


Nailmasters and Vessels (Old/Original)

by Ausomerus



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Adopted Children, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood and Torture, Child Death, Child Murder, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gen, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Mistaken Identity, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Protective Siblings, Sad and Happy, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, Self-Sacrifice, Siblings, So many OCs, Temporary Character Death, Trauma, adopt all the vessels!!!, mostly sad though, pale king is not a good father, past emotional/psychological abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-01-04 20:07:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 20,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21203327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ausomerus/pseuds/Ausomerus
Summary: There's a rewrite up now!When vessels show up at the Nailmasters' houses, they think they are regular children. When the chlidrens' pasts come to the surface, can they help them? Hollow Knight, Mato and Oro, and the locations belong to Team Cherry.





	1. Crystalized Child

Crystal heard her feet hitting the stones. She didn’t know if she was safe anymore. She shook her head, trying to stay away from thoughts of the abyss and being thrown into it by her father. The pain in her mask from the crack flared up as she face-planted into the stones. Salty tears disinfected her wounded hands as she caught them. She looked around, noticing a house hidden in a cavern and she thought to herself.

“Maybe that’s a safe place? Hopefully nobody’s there.” 

She stepped into the house and was immediately greeted by a large bug with a nail on its back. The bug was looking away from her. She took a step back. She tried to turn around to run out of the house, but fell to the ground. The pain in her mask was getting worse. She heard the bug walk closer to her and she hoped the bug would leave and not hurt her. She hoped the bug wouldn’t abandon her, like her father did, for not being perfect. She felt the void inside her react harshly to that thought. She wanted to be cared about, but she was scared that whoever cared would leave once they realized she wasn’t perfect. She figured the bug was like her father. She shakily signed.

“Please don’t hurt me. I can be perfect." she pleaded. ”I can be hollow. Please don’t throw me away. Please don’t throw me in the abyss. Please don’t leave me to die.” 

She looked again as the bug sat down next to her, helped her to her feet and spoke.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Did someone hurt you?” 

She nodded. The bug sighed and spoke again. 

“Who hurt you?” 

Crystal sighed.

“Father. He threw me into the abyss. I wasn’t perfect. I thought too much. I expressed myself.” She felt tears falling and the bug handing her a tissue.

“Who’s your father, little one?”

Crystal signed.

“Pale Crown.” 

The bug pulled her into a hug and said something that surprised her.

“My brother, Oro, adopted a vessel that was also thrown into the abyss by the Pale King. I’m sorry for what you’ve been through, little one.” The bug gasped before saying another thing. “I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Mato. What’s your name, little one?”

“My name is Crystal. What does the vessel Oro adopted look like?” 

Mato thought for a moment.

“He has three horns on the top of his head and two horns going up on the side of his head. He also had a crack going from the side of his mask to above his left eye socket from being thrown into the abyss. According to Oro, someone said something that triggered a sort of flashback to when he was thrown into the abyss.” 

“I think I know him. Is his name Elisha? I thought he died! He was taken by father to the room where the ‘failures’ are discarded around three weeks before me. I thought he died. He was my friend. Since he’s alive, he’s still my friend. He’s okay!” 

Mato nodded.

“His name is Elisha. What do you mean by ‘failures’, little one? Is that what your father called you?” 

Crystal nodded, tears welling in her eyes.

“I don’t understand why he called us failures. Were we bad? Did we mess up one too many times?” 

Mato shook his head.

“He called you and your siblings ‘failures’ because he failed as a parent. I’ll make sure not to do that if you’d be okay having me as your dad.” 

Crystal excitedly nodded. She signed something that made Mato’s heart melt.

“I love you dad.”


	2. Uncomfortable Memories at Oro's House

Oro looked over at Elisha, a child he adopted one snowy night. Elisha had wandered into Oro's house, shivering and alone. Oro had quickly warmed up the child, wrapping a blanket around him. Oro shook his head, trying to focus on the present. Elisha ran up to Oro, trying to wrap his short arms around his father figure. They heard a knock at the door, Elisha letting go of Oro to let his new “dad” open the door. Oro opened the door, revealing Hornet, who stepped inside, noticing the small vessel tugging on Oro's cape. She crouched down after greeting Oro and spoke, her voice laced with venom.

"Did the Pale King throw away another of my siblings?” Hornet noticed an all-too-familiar jerking motion from Elisha that she had seen in Ghost. “If I ever see him, I’m going to kill him!” 

She realized Elisha was crying and she spoke, trying to sound as comforting as she could. 

"Little one, are you okay? My anger wasn't directed at you, I assure you." 

Oro sat on the ground, hoping that Elisha would sit in his lap like usual, especially when he's upset. Oro became slightly concerned when Elisha didn't move. Oro spoke, hoping to figure out why Elisha was crying.

"Elisha, did something happen? Did the Pale King hurt you?" Oro heard Elisha's voice in his head. Oro figured Hornet probably did too, considering she looked for the source of the voice, before realizing it was Elisha.

"Wasn't good enough. Wasn't hollow. Wasn't perfect. Don't want to be thrown away. Have to be perfect. Hollow. Don't feel. Don't think. Have to be perfect. Maybe Father won't notice. Not perfect. Going to get thrown away. Don't hope. Must be hollow! Be hollow! Hollow! Please! Don't want to be thrown away! Have to be hollow. Become hollow. Need to be hollow. Don't want to be thrown away. I can be perfect! Father! Please don't throw me away! I can be hollow! Father, come back! Please! I can be hollow! I don't want to die! Come back! Come back! Please! Please... I'm falling! Father! Help! Don't want to die! Father! Come back! Hurts! Father! Please... Father... Mask hurts... Want hurt to stop... Father... Help... Scared..." 

Oro and Hornet watched and heard as Elisha fell deeper into his own thoughts, unable to escape the memory. Tears fell from Elisha's face. Oro grabbed Elisha's hands as his hands went to where the crack in his mask was, frantically trying to claw at it. Oro spoke, feeling a mix of horror and concern from watching his child try to hurt himself over a memory. 

Elisha was breathing fast, both Oro and Hornet were worried for him.

"Elisha, you're okay. You're okay. You're not there anymore. It isn't happening anymore. You're safe." Oro wrapped Elisha in a hug, rubbing circles into his back. Hornet stepped closer, also hugging Elisha. She spoke, worry for her sibling evident on her face.

"Elisha, you're out of that horrible place. You're okay. You're with Oro and me. He's gone now." Elisha's breathing slowed down slightly. Elisha stopped trying to claw at his crack in his mask, so Oro let go of his hands. Elisha quickly grabbed onto Oro like he was a lifeline. Oro spoke, wiping tears from his child's face.

"Elisha, I promise you, nothing like that will ever happen to you again as long as I'm around. If somebody tries hurting you, they'll have to get through me and my nail first, alright?" Elisha pointed at Hornet. Hornet nodded. Elisha nodded. Hornet and Oro heard Elisha's voice in their heads.

"Safe here. Hornet protect Elisha. Oro protect Elisha. Tired. Rest. Safe." He was completely silent for a bit. Oro and Hornet noticed the breathing pattern that Elisha had. Hornet looked at Oro and quietly spoke.

"That took a lot out of him didn't it? Hopefully, he'll feel better when he wakes up." Oro nodded, reaching for a blanket, only for Hornet to grab it and give it to him. Oro wrapped Elisha in the blanket, leaving only his head uncovered. Hornet headed towards the door. Oro waved goodbye. Hornet waved goodbye and left Oro's house. Oro looked down at Elisha, sleeping in his lap, and smiled. Oro spoke.

"You're safe with us, Elisha. You may not feel like it sometimes, but we'll do everything we can to protect you. If your lousy excuse of a father ever shows up, I won't let him get you. He'll have to go through me before he hurts you again."


	3. Crystal Meet Elisha, Elisha Meet Crystal

Elisha was sitting in Oro's lap, almost asleep until Oro spoke up.

"Elisha, my brother, Mato, will be visiting today. He's bringing a sibling of yours over. I think you and her will be happy to see each other." Oro heard Elisha's voice in his head.

"Sibling! Others!" Oro smiled and nodded. They heard a knock at the door. Elisha jumped up, letting Oro get the door. Oro opened the door, revealing a bug that looked very similar to him. Elisha noticed their sibling, being carried by the bug. He felt the void inside him frantically bubbling. He thought to himself, panicking.

"Sibling, no! Sibling not safe! Save sibling! Sibling going to get thrown away. No! Save sibling!" He immediately grabbed his nail, rushing towards the bug. Elisha watched as the bug set his sibling down on the floor, letting her run towards Elisha. Oro looked over at Elisha and spoke.

"Elisha, you're okay. Your sibling, Crystal, is also okay. Nobody's getting thrown away. It's okay. You're safe. Crystal's also safe." Oro sat down on the ground, letting Elisha sit in his lap. Crystal looked at Elisha and signed.

"Elisha! It's okay. We're safe." Crystal gave Elisha a hug. Elisha looked at Crystal, speaking through his thoughts.

"Crystal, you're okay? I thought you might have died…" Elisha hugged Crystal back, tears falling from his face. After a while, Elisha and Crystal were running around the house, chasing each other. Everyone in the room heard Elisha as he was practically screaming through his thoughts.

"Going to get you!" They then heard something that surprised them all. They heard Crystal as she spoke through her thoughts.

"No, you won't!" Elisha stopped chasing her as Mato called Crystal over. Mato spoke.

"Crystal, you can speak through your thoughts like Elisha?" Crystal nodded, signing.

"I can stop. I can be perfect. Please don't throw me away!" Mato shook his head, responding.

"Crystal, you're not in trouble. I won't throw you away, nobody will. You can speak through your thoughts all you want, alright?" What Crystal said next made him quite angry at the Pale King.

"I did before. Pale Crown said I wasn't perfect. I was supposed to have 'no voice to cry suffering'. I was supposed to have 'no mind to think'. He threw me away once he realized I could speak through my thoughts. It hurt. Landing hurt. My mask hurt. He closed the door. It was very dark and scary. Other siblings. Their masks were cracked too." Crystal's breath quickened. She reached up to the crack running down the middle of her mask. Oro looked over, taking his eyes off of Elisha for a second. He spoke, knowing what was about to happen. It had happened to Elisha about a week before the visit.

"Mato, grab her hands." Mato grabbed her hands just as she tried to claw at the crack in her mask, right in between her eyes, tears falling from her face. Elisha ran over to Crystal, wrapping his arms around her. He spoke, trying his best to not let his thoughts sound scared.

"Crystal safe. Elisha safe. No more Abyss. Crystal in Kingdom's Edge. Elisha in Kingdom's Edge. Mato protect Crystal. Elisha protect Crystal. Oro protect Crystal. Not happening now. Pale Crown's gone." Crystal's breathing slowed. She looked around a bit before she looked at Mato. He let go of her hands, Crystal reaching up and wiping tears off his face. Mato hugged Crystal. Crystal hugged him back, speaking in her thoughts.

"Dad okay?" Mato nodded. He spoke.

"Are you okay, Crystal?" He heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"Scared Pale Crown will come back. Scared Pale Crown will hurt Elisha. Scared Pale Crown will hurt Crystal." Mato spoke.

"I won't let him hurt you or Elisha ever again. He'll have to get through me before he does." Oro agreed. Oro and Mato heard both children speak in their thoughts.

"Tired." Mato and Oro smiled, creating a pillow fort for their children to sleep in. Elisha and Crystal crawled into the pillow fort. They all heard Crystal and Elisha speak through their thoughts.

"Goodnight!"


	4. You Get a Gift, You Get a Gift

Mato opened the door, revealing Oro, cradling Elisha. Crystal ran up to the group, tugging on Oro's arm. She spoke, Mato and Oro expecting her voice in their heads.

"Can Elisha play? Is Elisha okay?" Oro nodded, speaking.

"Elisha can play. He's okay, just taking a nap. I think the area was a bit boring to him on the way here." Mato chuckled a bit.

"Oro, the Howling Cliffs aren't exactly known to be very interesting." Oro nodded, sitting on the ground, readjusting Elisha slightly to make him more comfortable while he was sitting down. After a bit, Elisha woke up. He rubbed at his eyes a bit, then glanced around. He then spoke through his thoughts.

"Sibling Crystal! Uncle Mato!" Elisha then looked at Oro, silently asking permission to go play. Oro nodded, smiling at both Elisha and Crystal. Elisha jumped up from Oro's lap, then sprinted over to Crystal. They played for a bit. After a bit, Mato called both children over. Crystal and Elisha both walked over, tilting their heads. Mato handed them both a present, neatly wrapped.  
Crystal opened hers first, revealing a dark pink cloak. Elisha opened his after seeing what Crystal got. Elisha pulled out a similar cloak that was dark green. They quickly put the cloaks on. They both tried speaking at the same time, resulting in a jumble of the words 'dad' and 'uncle'. Mato and Oro chuckled a bit, resulting in Crystal and Elisha also laughing, albeit silently. Mato spoke.

"Try imagining yourself going forward when you're running around." Mato turned to Oro, who was looking at him with a slightly confused expression. Oro was about to speak, but was cut short when he saw Crystal and Elisha dashing after one another. They heard Crystal and Elisha's alternating voices speaking in their heads.

"Tag, you're it!"

"Now, you're it!"

They heard Crystal and Elisha giggling in their heads before both children plopped onto the pillows nearby, seemingly out of energy. Mato got cups of warm tea from the kitchen, handing them to the children. He was about to ask if they would even be able to drink the tea considering they didn't have mouths, hence their telepathic speech, but was cut short when he saw them put a hand into their cups of warm tea, the tea disappearing slowly afterward. Once all the tea was gone from their cups, he heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"Dad, that was good!" He then heard Elisha in his head, agreeing with Crystal. Mato figured Oro had also saw, considering he looked like if his mouth wasn't connected to his face, it would be on the floor. They heard both children speak in their heads.

"I'm hungry." Mato then made four grilled cheeses, handing one to each child, and one to Oro. Oro and Mato watched in awe as Crystal and Elisha both just absorbed their grilled cheeses into their bodies. They both spoke through their thoughts.

"That was good! What was that?" Mato responded, trying to process what he had just witnessed. Oro didn't respond, simply trying to process what he had just witnessed and make sense of it.

"That was a grilled cheese. If you both agree, we can have them more often." Mato heard both children agreeing in his head. They all proceeded to just relax for the rest of the day.


	5. Just a Bad Dream

Crystal looked around. All she saw was darkness, but then the Pale King was in front of her. She felt her breath quicken. She heard him speak.

"Finally, the perfect vessel. The purest of all of them." She noticed Elisha standing beside her. She watched as the Pale King grabbed Elisha and threw him into the darkness. She heard his panicked screams inside her head. She tried to move her arms, but realized she couldn't. She looked and noticed chains wrapped around her. She looked at the Pale King, silently pleading for him to explain what was going on. He spoke.

"You shall contain the infection." She felt a sharp burning feeling as she tried to contain it, it spilling out of her from her eyes. The Pale King simply watched, not even reacting when she started crying. She felt her mask and shell cracking and breaking as she failed to contain the infection. She felt her shell fall apart, the Pale King grabbing her and throwing her into the darkness once he realized she wasn't the perfect vessel. She saw Mato, she tried to walk towards him. She fell onto the ground, Mato turning around to face her. She finally said something through her thoughts, trying to keep from crying.

"Dad, help. Please. I'm scared. It hurts." Mato scoffed. He spoke.

"I don't have a child. You're just a vessel meant to contain the infection. You're the reason I lost so many friends and family to the infection. It isn't that hard to contain the infection. All you had to do was be perfect or at the very least, hollow." Crystal felt tears run down her face. Mato turned and walked away from her, leaving her completely alone in the darkness.

She woke up, tears running down her face. She tried to steady her breathing, but failed to because she was still crying. She unconsciously started clawing at the crack in her mask, trying to calm down. The pain gave her something to focus on instead of her thoughts. She heard shuffling feet, but was too scared to clearly think about who it could be. The light was turned on, revealing a rather concerned Mato. She heard Mato speak as he tried to gently guide her hands away from the crack in her mask.

"Crystal, it's okay. It was a bad dream." Mato grabbed a couple tissues from nearby, wiping the tears from Crystal's face. He spoke again after a bit. "Do you want to talk about it?" Crystal nodded, she started crying again as she spoke through her thoughts.

"I failed. I couldn't save him. I couldn't save him! I just watched! I didn't even try to stop Pale Crown! I wasn't perfect! I couldn't contain it! It hurt! It hurt and he just watched! He didn't even try to help! My shell broke…. Why did he put chains around me? Why didn't he try to help? He threw me into the darkness… You said that you didn't…. You didn't have a child... That I was just a vessel…. If I just contained the infection…. He was right for throwing me into the abyss… I wasn't perfect enough… If I just contained the infection, nobody would have gotten infected! It's my fault so many bugs are infected!" She was surprised to feel Mato wrap her in a hug. Mato spoke, tears falling from his face.

"He was in no way right for throwing you into the abyss. You're perfect the way you are. You are my child and nothing will ever change that. It's not your fault bugs are infected. He chose to throw you into the abyss because he's a lousy parent." Mato walked out of the room, coming back with a pillow and a blanket. Crystal was confused. Mato explained. "I brought my blanket and pillow from my room in here to hopefully help you sleep and make you feel safer." Mato heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"Thank you, Dad. I love you. Goodnight." Mato set his blanket and pillow on the floor next to Crystal's bed, quickly falling asleep, but not before telling Crystal one last thing before they both fell asleep.

"I love you too, Crystal."

Crystal woke up to a present next to her bed, Mato's bed still on the ground. She carefully opened the present, revealing a red bow. She quickly put it on one of her horns. She ran into the kitchen, revealing Mato, making pancakes. She spoke to him through her thoughts.

"Thank you for the ribbon, Dad." Mato turned to her and smiled.


	6. Self Defense

Oro looked over at Elisha, wondering if he should teach him to fight, or at the very least, be able to protect himself. Oro scolded himself, of course his child would need to protect himself! There were infected husks, great hoppers, and primal aspids, all of which could be very dangerous for a child who didn't know how to protect themselves. He wondered if the dash from the cloak Mato gave Elisha could be used in some way. He realized, at the very least, it could be good for transportation, at least faster than walking. He spoke.

"Elisha, can you please come over here for a second? I want to ask you something. You already have a nail, but I could give you a new one. I think I have some different nails around here somewhere." Elisha walked over, awaiting the question from his dad. Oro spoke. "Would you like to learn how to fight, or at the very least defend yourself? We can wait until later if you aren't ready." Elisha responded through his thoughts.

"Learn to fight, but no new nail. Thank you." Oro nodded, getting a nail made out of wood for himself and another for Elisha. He wanted to make sure nobody got hurt, especially his child.

Oro thought to himself, "I can heal easily from most wounds, but a small child will take longer to heal from a wound from a nail, possibly having a fatal wound. It'll be safer to use plywood nails until we both are around the same level, or at the very least, he can defend himself." He handed one of the plywood nails to Elisha. Oro explained.

"This is a plywood nail. It's pretty much a training nail to make sure nobody gets hurt while training." Oro held the other plywood nail, letting Elisha move his hand and rotate it to see how he needed to hold it. Once Elisha held the nail properly, Oro walked Elisha outside. There was more room outside for sparring. Oro spoke.

"Elisha, first I'll teach you how to block attacks, alright?" Elisha nodded. Oro explained to Elisha how to block attacks.  
"When the nail gets close to you, hit it away with your nail. You don't need to knock it out of their hand or anything, just away from your body will work." Elisha nodded, trying it once Oro demonstrated and let him know precisely when to block, pausing to do so. Once Elisha got that down, Oro stopped pausing and Elisha was still doing well. Oro spoke again.

"Now we'll move onto attacking. You can usually start with a horizontal slice, followed by a diagonal slice." Oro demonstrated, making sure to pause at the end of each slice, as well as make sure not to move too fast to let Elisha copy his movements. Elisha got it down after a couple times. Oro heard a familiar stomping sound from the other room. He quickly picked up Elisha. He heard Elisha speaking in his head, voice filled with concern.

"What's wrong? What's that sound?" Oro shook his head, running closer to the house before setting Elisha on the ground. He spoke.

"It's a Great Hopper. They can be very dangerous at times, so I recommend you go inside and let me handle it. I'll be inside the house soon." Elisha ran into the house, carefully watching from the safety of the house. He watched as a giant bug with six legs and an orange belly appeared. He quickly realized the bug had orange eyes. He wondered to himself why Mato, Crystal, Oro and himself didn't have orange eyes like the bug. He noticed Oro starting to slow down, his nail strikes getting less precise and occasionally shaking his head before focusing his attacks again.

Elisha felt like he had to protect his dad. He ran inside, trying to find a good nail to use. He knew the plywood nails wouldn't hurt anything, so he found a plain, steel nail. He quickly picked up the nail, rushing out to protect his dad. He came back to his dad collapsed on the ground, the great hopper still hopping around, just barely missing his dad. He ran towards his dad, trying to help him up. He spoke through his thoughts.

"Elisha help Dad. Elisha save Dad from Great Hopper." Oro looked at him, trying to mask his fear, concern and worry about his child getting hurt. Elisha noticed the Great Hopper trying to block the way to the house. Elisha looked at Oro, making his decision. He spoke through his thoughts.

"Elisha distract. Dad get to safety. Elisha come back safe. Promise." Oro shook his head, tears running down his face, his fears growing to be too much. He thought to himself, fearing for his child.

"If I couldn't beat that, just narrowly escaping, I don't think this is a good idea." Oro spoke.

"Elisha, no. I'll distract the Great Hopper and you get to the house. You get to safety." Elisha shook his head, running up to the Great Hopper. He struck the Great Hopper's legs, noticing his dad run inside the house from his peripheral vision. He saw Oro run back out, nail in hand. He then noticed the Great Hopper above his dad. He only had one thought going through his head.  
"Elisha save Dad." Elisha dashed over, ramming into his dad, throwing him out of the way of the Great Hopper. He heard his dad scream his name before the Great Hopper landed. Elisha spoke one final thing through his thoughts.

"I love you, Dad."


	7. Stains on the World

Elisha woke up at his bed. He shakily got off the bed, hearing a commotion outside, then silence, then someone crying. He felt hollow, but worse, like a core part of him was missing. He tried to remember what happened, but it made his head hurt, so he stopped. He ran outside, holding a nail he didn't remember picking up. He stopped once he saw his dad clutching a form (that looked way too similar to him for his liking) to his chest, sobbing. He looked around, noticing an almost black ghost with glowing white eyes that looked eerily similar to him. He noticed the ghost didn't have feet. He ran up to the ghost, slashing at the ghost until it turned into orbs of whatever it was made of. The orbs quickly merged with him. He quickly realized the hollow feeling left entirely. Then the memories of what happened hit him like a train.

He remembered the Great Hopper, his dad, running up to it, and saving his dad. He then remembered the feeling of his mask shattering from the impact of the Great Hopper crushing him. That was enough to send him face planting into the snow beneath his feet. He felt sick, like he was going to throw up. He heard his dad run to his side, probably trying to figure out how he was alive again. Elisha realized he didn't know either. He felt tears running down his face, falling onto the snow, staining it. He felt his dad wrap him in a hug. He heard his dad speaking and he tried his best to listen.

"Elisha? Elisha, please speak to me… Are you okay? I thought you died, but whatever happened, I'm glad to have you back. Elisha?" He turned his head to his dad, speaking through his thoughts.

"Tired…" He felt Oro pick him up, carefully examining his mask for further damage. He heard his dad exhale. He heard his dad speak again.

"Your mask is okay. I'm taking you inside, tucking you in and you're resting at least until tomorrow. We also are probably going to be training inside until all the Great Hoppers are gone." Elisha nodded, letting his dad tuck him in. Elisha spoke through his thoughts.

"I love you, Dad. I'm sorry. Didn't want to lose you. Goodnight." Oro gave him a gentle hug, telling him goodnight and he loved him. Oro went to his room and cried. He was terrified that he was going to lose his child when he saw the Great Hopper land on him, hearing his mask shatter and pulling his child close. He also remembered when the 'ghost' of his child came from his broken mask, that was equally terrifying to see.


	8. Everything Goes Wrong (Except for When It Doesn't)

Mato heard a knock at the door. Crystal hopped off his lap, letting him get up to open the door. She watched him open the door, revealing Oro, carrying Elisha, who was awake this time. Elisha noticed Crystal and promptly started struggling in Oro's grasp. Oro put Elisha on the ground, smiling. Elisha ran over to Crystal, speaking in his head, for all to hear.

"Crystal know that if Crystal dies, Crystal comes back?" Mato gave Oro a concerned, confused, and slightly angry look. Oro knew he had a lot of explaining to do. Oro went to explain before he heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"How do you know? Did you die?" Elisha was silent, before Oro heard his voice in his head.

"I died. Great Hopper. Hurt bad." Oro noticed Mato glaring at him (that he figured if looks could kill, he'd be dead). Oro started trying to explain, while Elisha explained more to Crystal.

"I was trying to teach Elisha how to defend himself and a Great Hopper jumped into the area around my house. He sacrificed himself to save me. The Great Hopper crushed him and shattered his mask. A sort of 'ghost' of him appeared from his mask. Next, he ran out of the house, completely fine! He attacked the 'ghost' and then he started crying." Mato nodded, calling Elisha over. Elisha walked over, Crystal following him. Mato spoke.

"Elisha, did you save my brother from a Great Hopper?" Elisha nodded, then responded through his thoughts.

"In trouble?" Mato shook his head, giving Elisha a hug. Mato spoke again.

"Thank you for saving my brother, Elisha." He felt Crystal tugging at his cape. He turned to Crystal. "Yes?" He heard Crystal speak in his head.

"Can Elisha play now?" Mato nodded, letting Elisha run off and play with Crystal. He heard Crystal speak in his head again. "Can we play outside?" Mato nodded, responding.

"Don't go too far away from the house." Crystal nodded. Elisha and Crystal walked out of the house. They explored around Howling Cliffs, making sure not to go too far from the house. Crystal and Elisha sat down on the ground, taking a short rest. A vengefly noticed them, seeing them as a small, easy meal. It dove at them, mandibles open, ready to kill.

Elisha noticed this. Crystal, however did not. Elisha nudged Crystal, trying to get her to move. Crystal noticed the urgency in his movements, quickly getting up and running the opposite way. Elisha stayed behind, trying to keep the vengefly from chasing his sister. After a bit, he ran in the direction Crystal had ran in. He didn't see her anywhere. He heard her voice in his head, sounding frightened.

"Elisha? I'm scared… I want to go home." He ran faster, dashing whenever he could, trying to get to Crystal faster. He clutched his nail tightly in his hand. He found a little area where it looked like someone had fallen through. He hopped down, noticing a figure, hiding in the corner. It was very dark in the area, so he couldn't make out a lot of the figures features, but he did see the crystal in her mask. He spoke through his thoughts.

"Crystal! Okay? Crystal go home. Elisha go home too." Crystal nodded, wiping tears from her face, taking a step. Elisha heard her mentally scream in pain as she collapsed onto the ground. He quickly rushed to her side. He hugged her, but she didn't hug him back. He started trying to mentally reach out to Oro or Mato. He practically screamed mentally in his thoughts. "Dad, help! Crystal's hurt!" He didn't know if he successfully reached out to Oro or Mato. They were pretty far from the house, he had only ever communicated through his thoughts at a short distance.

Mato and Oro were kind of suspicious because Elisha and Crystal were never this quiet unless they were asleep, and even then, they often had nightmares. It had been around 30 minutes since they had went outside. Mato walked outside, hoping to see Crystal and Elisha laying nearby, asleep. He didn't see them, so he looked around a bit more. He rushed back into the house, trying not to freak out. He got Oro's attention, then spoke. He started freaking out once he spoke, however.

"Oro, Crystal's gone! Elisha's also gone! I don't know where they are! What if something hurt them? What if they're lost?" Mato heard Oro speak.

"Mato, breathe! You panicking isn't going to help us find the kids! Focus on calming down, then we'll look for them." Mato breathed in, letting out a shaky exhale. They headed out to look for them. Mato looked around, noticing a dead vengefly on the ground. Mato pointed it out to Oro.

"You were teaching Elisha to defend himself, right? I think he's been here and probably Crystal too." Oro nodded. They split up because there were many ways to look still. Mato unknowingly ran in the direction that Crystal and Elisha ran in. Mato heard a faint voice in his head. It sounded like Elisha.

"Crystal, dad's coming. Don't worry." He then heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"My leg hurts bad. Do you think he'll be mad?" Mato felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes. _His kid was hurt and all she cared about was whether or not he'd be mad?_ He ran around, shouting.

"Crystal, Elisha, if you can hear me, say something! I need to find you! I'm not mad. I'm actually more concerned than anything!" He heard Elisha in his head.

"Right above us. Please hurry. Crystal passed out." Mato noticed a hole in the ground. He looked closer and he could see Crystal and Elisha. Elisha was hugging Crystal, holding her to his chest. He reached down, letting Elisha hand Crystal to him. He carefully cradled Crystal. He carefully laid her on the ground, noticing what looked like tear streaks running down her mask, as well as a hairline fracture from her right eye to the crack running down the middle of her mask. He then helped Elisha out of the hole, who had tear streaks running down his face. Elisha broke into tears when he saw Crystal. He heard Elisha speak in his head.

"Crystal okay?" Mato spoke, not wanting to lie to Elisha, but not wanting to scare him.

"She'll be okay." He hoped he was telling the truth, he saw void leaking out of her mask and void leaking out of an injury to her leg. He heard footsteps. He turned around, on the verge of tears. Oro looked down at Crystal. He frowned, gently picking her up. They walked back to the house, silent except to answer questions from Elisha.


	9. Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal's fine. She's recovering, but she's fine. A visit to Deepnest might be in order though.

Mato watched as Oro set Crystal down on her bed. Mato quickly grabbed some bandages from one of the cabinets in the kitchen. He carefully wrapped her injured leg, he then glanced up at her mask. He grabbed a washcloth, getting it damp. He gently cleaned the dry void from her mask. He then wrapped around her eyes with the bandages. He then took off the bandages on her mask, making it where it was covering only her right eye and the crack. No more void was leaking from her mask, much to Mato's relief. He heard as Oro sat down next to him, followed by Elisha sitting on the other side of him. He felt his brother give him a quick hug, speaking.

"She'll be fine, Mato. She's strong." Elisha nodded, quickly dozing off. Mato scooped up Elisha into his lap, being careful not to wake him. Oro looked at Elisha, pointing out that he had faint tear stains on his mask. Mato wiped the tear stains off of Elisha's mask, turning to Oro.

"He's probably worried about her. They're siblings, raised by a lousy excuse for a father." Oro nodded, watching Crystal's breathing. Oro and Mato fell asleep quickly, sitting on the floor. Mato woke up a bit later to see Crystal sitting in her bed, staring at him. He quickly got up and gave her a hug, trying and failing to keep from crying. He felt Crystal patting his face while wrapping him in a hug using her other arm. He heard her voice in his head.

"I'm okay. I'm okay. It's okay." She turned to look at Elisha, who was just beginning to wake up. She spoke to him in her thoughts. "Elisha! I'm okay. Are you okay?" Elisha woke up more upon hearing her voice. He rushed over, trying to reach his sister while Mato was still giving her a hug. Mato released her from the hug, letting Elisha hug her. Elisha spoke through his thoughts, tears streaming down his face.

"Crystal okay? Sure? Mask cracked more." Crystal nodded, reaching up to feel the crack in her mask that Elisha was talking about. She felt a small, barely noticeable crack in her mask. Mato was starting to get concerned. He thought to himself. _How much more before their masks break? What'll happen to them? What if they can't defeat their shadows?_ Oro was worried about the same thing, but most of the time just tried to convince himself that they'd be fine. Mato decided that he would bring up the idea of taking them to the Mask Maker in Deepnest to see if they could fix their masks. He turned to Elisha and Crystal, calling them over. Crystal and Elisha looked at him, curiously awaiting what he had to say.

"Do you two want to go to the Mask Maker in Deepnest? He might be able to fix your masks. You two don't have to get them fixed. It's your choice. It's your life, mask, and body." Crystal and Elisha considered it for a moment, then nodded. Mato nodded, heading over to get supplies to go to Deepnest. He thought of teaching Crystal to defend herself before shaking his head. _She'll be fine. Elisha, Oro, and me will protect her. I'll teach her to protect herself if she wants when we get back._


	10. Dark Deepnest (AKA Deepnest is an awesome place [said no one ever])

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A visit to Deepnest goes horribly wrong.

Mato walked out the door, Crystal following shortly behind him. Oro and Elisha followed after Crystal. After a while, they reached Deepnest. Crystal didn't like it very much, she wasn't a big fan of the dark. She held onto Mato's cape with a vice grip. She felt him pick her up. He spoke, trying to calm her down.

"It's okay, Crystal. You're safe, nothing will happen to you." Crystal nodded, burying her face into Mato's fluffy collar. It blocked out the noises of the crawling weaverlings. She caught a glimpse of one, its orange eyes piercing into her, striking an unfamiliar amount of fear into her. She buried her face further into Mato's collar. She felt Mato rub circles into her back. After a bit, she fell asleep. She woke up after a bit, surprisingly asking to be put down to let her walk.

She noticed a figure in the shadows, they had horns sort of like hers and Elisha's horns. She felt hope fluttering in her chest. She spoke in her thoughts to the vessel.

"Sibling!" Mato and Oro were watching and comforting Elisha, making sure he didn't get hurt and trying to calm him down. He also didn't like Deepnest. Crystal ran off after the vessel, not noticing that it was leading her far away from Mato, Oro, and Elisha. She didn't notice the husks of dead bugs around an entrance to a dark and narrow tunnel. She followed the vessel, only stopping when she heard the slamming of doors behind her. She turned around, trying and failing to open the doors by hitting them. She turned around, proceeding to follow the vessel. She saw the vessel waiting in the middle of a room, standing on a raised section of the terrain. She looked at the ceiling, wondering what was there.

She felt fear encompass her, voidy tears falling down her face. She saw vessels suspended from the ceiling by black strings. She remembered the vessel in the center of the room. She turned to it, speaking through her thoughts.

"Sibling?" The vessel didn't respond at all. She knew something wasn't right. She took a step towards the vessel, even though every fiber of her being was screaming at her to run away. She heard a sickening crack as the vessel's neck snapped, turning upside down. She watched in horror as the figure revealed itself to be Nosk. It let out a roar, before turning to her. She hid in a small hole in the ground, hoping that the creature wouldn't be able to reach her. She heard the creature jumping and stomping, unable to reach her. She felt tears roll down her face, her breathing getting faster. She didn't want to die to this creature. She didn't want to end up like the other vessels in the room.

Mato noticed Crystal was being very quiet. He turned to see where she was, before he noticed she was gone. He turned to Oro, speaking.

"Oro, is Crystal over there?" Oro shook his head, scooping up Elisha into his arms. They started looking around for any signs of where she was. Mato quickly noticed very faint, almost unnoticeable footprints that matched Crystal's. There was another set of footprints of a vessel, matching Crystal's. Mato, Oro, and Elisha headed in that direction, hoping that Crystal was okay.

Mato heard the sound of something jumping and slamming into the ground furiously. He followed the footsteps, leading him to a narrow tunnel, blocked by doors made of spider webs. He turned to Oro, his face paling.

"Oro, Crystal's in danger. Grave danger." Oro nodded, trying to find another way through to the room. He figured that the easiest way to get to Crystal would be to try to destroy the door. He slashed at the door, barely destroying any of the webbing. He turned to Mato, who grabbed his nail and started slashing the door. After a while, they destroyed the door. Elisha was holding onto Oro's cape. After they destroyed two more doors, they saw the room. Mato saw Nosk frantically jumping in a generalized area around the middle of the room. He heard Crystal's voice in his head.

"I don't want to die… Dad, please hurry and notice I'm gone… I'm scared… This thing traps vessels. I don't want to be its next victim…" Mato could hear the fear in her voice. Mato turned to Oro.

"Oro, I'll distract that creature. You get Crystal and take her to safety. If I don't come back, take care of Crystal for me." Oro nodded, trying not to let his worry show. Mato rushed forward, slashing the creature's legs. It turned towards him, Mato quickly getting out of the way. Mato watched as Oro grabbed Crystal, holding her close. He watched as he ran out of the room. Mato attacked Nosk a couple more times, trying to keep its attention on him. It worked. Mato was about to strike again, but was cut short when Nosk jumped into the air.

He felt Nosk's sharp legs stab into his exoskeleton. He let out a grunt as he struck Nosk. Nosk pushed its legs further into his exoskeleton as it prepared to jump. Mato got up, trying to ignore the searing pain as he moved. He rushed to the exit, rushing past the now broken doors. He heard Nosk let out a roar as he left. He carefully got a couple rooms further. He collapsed to the ground, the pain in his abdomen intensifying as he hit the ground. He felt exhausted. He thought about Crystal, Elisha, and Oro finding him, lying on the ground, possibly dead. He felt tears falling from his face. He heard quick footsteps as he lost consciousness.

He woke up in the hot spring. He looked around warily. He noticed Crystal and Elisha sleeping on the bench. He noticed faint tear stains on their masks. He then noticed Oro sitting on the ground, slumped, tears falling from his eyes. Mato carefully moved a bit, letting out a grunt of pain as he did so. Oro looked up, wiping the tears from his eyes. He smiled as he got up, rushing over to Mato's side. His smile fell when he looked at Mato's injury. He spoke.

"Are you okay? I found you in a pool of your own blood... Crystal and Elisha were terrified. I had to practically pry Crystal off of you, so I could move you. Honestly, I was scared you weren't going to make it… Do you think you'll be able to make it to the Mask Maker?" Mato spoke, his voice wavering.

"Aside from the injury, yeah. I don't think I'll be able to get to the Mask Maker, not without having to stop to rest more times than I would like." Oro nodded, speaking.

"Do you want to stay here and rest? I can take the kids to the Mask Maker." Mato shook his head. He slowly got up, Oro having to help him up a bit. Oro scooped Elisha and Crystal into his arms. They almost got to the Mask Maker when Oro noticed Mato becoming more sluggish. He spoke, concern for Mato evident in his voice.

"Do you need to rest? I don't think Crystal and Elisha would mind. Honestly, I need to rest myself." Mato nodded, sitting down on the ground. Oro sat down on the ground next to him, Crystal and Elisha waking up and jumping out of his lap. Oro turned to them, speaking, sounding stern.

"Stay near us." Crystal and Elisha opted to sit down near Mato. Crystal started patting Mato, who turned to look at her. He heard her voice in his head.

"Okay?" Mato nodded, responding.

"Just tired." Crystal nodded, covering herself in his cape before dozing off. After a while, they got up and continued to the Mask Maker. Mato poked his head in, noticing a spider-like figure wearing a mask. The figure turned to him. He heard the figure speak.

"I am the Mask Maker. I see you have vessels with you, in desperate need of having their masks fixed." Mato nodded, correcting the Mask Maker.  
"They're not just vessels, they're our children." The Mask Maker nodded, starting to work on the solution that he would put on their masks to seal the cracks and breaks. The Mask Maker noticed the crystal in Crystal's mask. The Mask Maker spoke.

"I can completely fix their masks, including removing the crystal for a price." Mato nodded and spoke.

"How much will it cost?" The Mask Maker thought for a moment before speaking.

"1000 geo, 500 geo each." Mato agreed, handing the Mask Maker 1000 geo. The Mask Maker asked what the children's names were. Mato responded.  
"The one with the crystal in her mask is Crystal, and the other one is Elisha." The Mask Maker nodded, calling Crystal over. He carefully explained what he would do. Crystal sat down on the table, the Mask Maker carefully removing the crystal and putting the solution onto the cracks in her mask. It dried extremely quickly. Crystal hopped off the table, Elisha walking over to the Mask Maker. He got on the table, letting the Mask Maker fix his mask. He got off the table, running back to Mato, Oro, and Crystal. They left the Mask Maker's den and headed home.


	11. Ram and Hunter in Greenpath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two new vessels, Ram and Hunter have come into the picture!

Ram took a step forward, quickly noticing the shift from the Forgotten Crossroads to a greener area. He could barely see the dirt through the grass! He continued forward, entering Greenpath. Forgotten Crossroads didn't have too many things to hunt, let alone eat. He didn't really like the Gruzzers, they flew away and were annoying to hunt. He did like the taste of tiktiks, however. He ate them raw, unable to cook them. It tasted good, however, there weren't enough tiktiks in the Forgotten Crossroads to actually be a livable place. He wasn't too sure what was above the Forgotten Crossroads, nor did he want to. His main concern was the residents would either be infected like other bugs, or try to fight him even if they weren't.

He quickly spotted a mossy creature, whom he attacked, wanting to have something to eat. His stomach growled as it fell to the ground. He grabbed it, absorbing it into his body. He noticed movement in the bushes around him. He positioned his nail to strike, awaiting an attack. He lowered his nail upon seeing a white mask peek out of the bushes. They were trembling. He ushered them out of the bushes, quickly noticing void dripping off of their leg and from a giant crack in their mask. He pointed at their leg, to which they responded telepathically. It didn't take him long to figure out where the crack in their mask came from, the same way he got his.

"Hurt. Grass creature. Big. Many arms." Ram nodded, grabbing their hand. They spoke again.

"Hunter. He. Your name?" Ram nodded, responding telepathically, remembering his father wasn't around to tell him what a mistake he was.

"Ram. He. Hot spring? Bench?" Hunter responded.

"Bench." Hunter nodded, leading Hunter to a close-by bench in Greenpath. Hunter sat down, gesturing for Ram to sit too. Ram sat down next to Hunter. After a nap, they both headed deeper into Greenpath together. Ram saw a tiktik, he knew it wasn't much, but he heard Hunter's stomach growl, as well as his. He quickly killed it with his nail, cutting it in half. Almost. He cut it where Hunter would get more than him. He handed the bigger piece to Hunter, who spoke telepathically.

"You? Hungry? Need food?" Hunter tried giving the bigger piece to Ram, who refused to take it, insisting he had to eat the bigger piece. Hunter ate the bigger piece, hoping that Ram ate enough. After a while, they came to a thorny section of Greenpath. They carefully got through, coming upon a hut in the thorns. They needed shelter, so they headed in. They saw a strong-looking bug painting on an easel. The bug turned around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who the bug is?


	12. Ram, Hunter, and Sheo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sheo adopts Ram and Hunter. He also shows them that not all bugs are mean.

Ram motioned for Hunter to get behind him. Hunter did as told, getting behind Ram. The bug softly chuckled before speaking.  
  
“It’s okay, little ones. I won’t hurt you.” Ram took a cautionary step forward, pointing his nail at the bug. He lowered his nail as Hunter warily walked towards the bug. Ram was confused when the bug simply patted Hunter on the head. Ram took a step forward, the bug doing the same to him. The bug spoke again.  
  
“My name’s Sheo. What are your names?” Hunter was the first to respond telepathically.  
  
“Hunter. He.” Sheo nodded, turning to Ram. Ram telepathically spoke.  
  
“Ram. He.” Sheo nodded. He then spoke.  
  
“Have you two ate yet?” Ram and Hunter responded telepathically.  
  
“Could eat.” Sheo nodded, making three sandwiches. He handed one to Ram and one to one to Hunter. They absorbed their sandwiches into their bodies. Sheo spoke after they finished eating.  
  
“My brothers, Mato and Oro, adopted vessels. Would you two like to stay here with me?” Ram and Hunter nodded excitedly. Ram spoke telepathically to Sheo.  
  
“Sheo dad? Dad? Dad no hurt? Dad no throw away?” Sheo figured that like Crystal and Elisha, they would have suffered at their father’s hands. Sheo nodded, speaking as he did so.  
“No one will hurt you as long as I’m around. No one will throw you away either. Feel free to call me ‘Dad’ if you want, you don’t have to.” Ram and Hunter spoke loudly in their thoughts.  
  
“Dad Sheo! Dad Sheo! Sheo Dad! Best Dad!” Sheo chuckled, wrapping them a blanket. Sheo looked at them, speaking.  
  
“It’s almost night time, so we’re going to sleep soon.” Ram and Hunter quickly dozed off, leaving Sheo with his thoughts. Sheo wondered to himself. _How could the Pale King do something like this to children?! His children?! They’re no longer his children, not if we find them! _ After a bit, Sheo dozed off.


	13. Mato?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sheo, Oro, and Mato watch the siblings hang out. Mato decides he's going to go save the children from the Pale King. Alone.

Oro turned to Mato, whom was watching Crystal and Elisha run around, chasing each other. Oro spoke.

“Mato, Sheo’s coming over. He adopted children of his own.” Mato nodded, speaking.

“PK?” They had to use a nickname for the Pale King around Crystal and Elisha to avoid causing them distress. Oro nodded, frowning. Mato heard a knock at the door. He got up, opening it. He spoke, seeing the vessels sleeping in Sheo’s arms.

“Come inside, brother. It’s chilly outside.” Sheo nodded, walking inside the house. He sat down next to Oro, adjusting Ram and Hunter slightly to make them more comfortable without waking them. Crystal and Elisha stopped chasing each other to walk over to Sheo. Mato looked at them, noticing the worry and fear in their body language. Mato spoke.

“Crystal, Elisha, it’s okay. It’s my brother, your siblings are okay.” Crystal and Elisha nodded, staying close by to give their siblings a warm welcome once they woke up. Hunter and Ram woke up shortly, glancing over to Crystal and Elisha. Everyone heard Ram and Hunter’s voices in their heads.

“Sibling?” Crystal and Elisha nodded, responding for everyone to hear.

“Sibling safe.” Hunter and Ram jumped out of Sheo’s lap to explore the unfamiliar house. Crystal spoke.

“Play tag?” Hunter and Ram tilted their heads, curious as to what it was. Crystal spoke again.

“Elisha help demonstrate tag?” Elisha nodded, running over and tapping Crystal on the shoulder. Elisha yelled as he did so.

“Tag, you’re it! Crystal it!” Elisha then ran away from Crystal, Crystal chasing him. Crystal turned to Hunter and Ram who took off running after Elisha. After a bit of tag, they were all tired. Mato cooked them grilled cheeses, along with three for himself, Oro, and Sheo. They all ate their grilled cheeses, before Mato ended up watching everyone take naps. He nodded off after a bit as well. Mato awoke, wistful to save the remaining children from the Pale King. He got a piece of paper, writing messily on the paper. He sat the paper on the table. He headed out the door, careful not to wake anyone.

Oro awoke, feeling an incisive feeling that something was amiss. He looked to where Mato had been sleeping, to see no one. He got up, noticing the paper on the table. He quickly skimmed the contents of the letter. He tersely yelled at Sheo, fear biting at his insides.

“Sheo, get up! We have to save our brother from getting himself in serious trouble, or worse, killed!” Sheo groggily got up, looking at the children, whom were surprisingly, still asleep. Sheo turned to Oro, speaking.

“What about the kids, Oro?” Oro looked to the children, then Sheo. Oro spoke, his voice stern.

“You’re watching the kids. I’ll go save our brother.” Sheo watched as Oro left the house, heading into the unknown. He glanced to the kids, whom were blissfully unaware of the dire situation. Sheo felt a tear fall down his cheek, fear and concern for his brothers’ wellbeing biting at him.


	14. Painting Mysteries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sheo teaches the children to paint. Hunter paints a mystery vessel.

Sheo painted on a blank tablet gently. It was a good distraction from the situation at hand. He watched as the tablet moved a bit, wobbling on the makeshift stand. He glanced down, noticing Crystal poking where he had painted previously. He chuckled a bit. He spoke softly, his gruff voice sounding calm.  
  
“Crystal, do you wish to paint?” Crystal nodded enthusiastically, prompting Sheo to chuckle. He handed the paint brush to Crystal. He spoke again, Crystal’s excitement rubbing off on him.  
  
“Dip it in a color of your choice, then strike the tablet with color!” Elisha, Ram, and Hunter walked over, wondering what the ruckus was about. They watched as Crystal painted the bow that Mato had gifted her after her nightmare, the red as vibrant as the fire at Oro’s hut. Sheo heard Elisha speak in his head, curiosity evident in the young child’s voice.  
  
“Elisha paint! Want to paint! Elisha want to paint!” Crystal handed Elisha the brush. Elisha ran over to the tablet, quickly drawing a crude drawing of Oro. Sheo chuckled softly. He gruffly spoke.  
  
“Young Elisha, that is a very good drawing of my brother!” Elisha handed the brush to Ram, who looked at it curiously, before sprinting over to the tablet. He quickly drew a picture of Hunter. Hunter beamed at the picture as he saw it. He realized that it would be hard to notice considering his mask, so he opted to take something out of his voidy body. He handed it to Ram, who looked at the item. The small piece of fabric was quickly tucked into Ram’s void body. Ram handed the brush to Hunter, who ran over to the tablet, quickly painting a picture of a sibling that Sheo hadn’t seen before.

  
The vessel had curved horns, forking at the ends. They didn’t have any side horns, unlike the siblings that Sheo and his brothers adopted. Sheo spoke.

  
“Who is that, Hunter?” Hunter looked to Sheo, speaking in Sheo’s mind.

  
“Sibling. Thrown away. Name. Don’t know.” Sheo realized the children were starting to doze off. He wondered to himself how Mato and Oro were doing. He hoped Oro had found Mato and was bringing him back safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who is the vessel? I think we all know. Next chapter is going to be Mato and Oro.


	15. Too Late?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oro finds Mato. Mato is okay, but only sort of.

Oro was starting to become extremely disconcerted due to Mato's disappearance. He had read the note, or rather skimmed it. He knew enough. Mato was heading to save the children from the abhorrent king. He was hoping that he would be able to find Mato before he found the king. He heard a brusque grunt that sounded familiar. He ran in the direction of the grunts, stumbling across Mato. Oro spoke tersely, balking at how far Mato had gotten from the house.

"Mato! I finally found you! Do you have any idea what you're doing?! You might end up fighting the king! Do you _really_ think going alone to save the children is a good idea?" Oro then watched as Mato collapsed, falling to the ground, face-first. He ran over to Mato, shaking him, fear biting at his insides. He was practically screaming, tears streaming down his face, falling onto the dark rocks below them.

"Mato, come on! Wake up! Please! Please don't be dead!" He noticed Mato's breathing was very shallow. He let out a sigh, sitting down next to Mato. He spoke, his usually terse voice, soft and filled with concern.

"Don't worry, I've got you bro. We'll be okay." Oro felt tears roll down his face.


	16. The Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mato and Oro rescue 15 children (one of which is Little Ghost).

Oro sat next to Mato, wondering why he fainted and when he’d wake up. He heard a terse grunt from beside him. He looked at Mato, watching his eyes open. Oro was shocked to see Mato recover so quickly, before realizing he still needed to figure out why he fainted. He spoke, extremely candid.

“Mato, do you know why you fainted?” Mato responded, becoming quite abashed as he realized his mistake.

“I forgot to pack food.” Oro was bewildered by this mistake. _How could he forget food?!_ Oro face-palmed, letting out a sigh. He looked around, noticing a dark bug crawling on the walls nearby. It didn’t really seem to even notice or acknowledge the two Nailmasters. Oro got to his feet, grasping his nail in one hand, rushing the bug. He skewered the bug on his nail, pulling the bug away from the wall. He carefully pulled the bug off of his nail, wanting to preserve as much of the meat as possible.

He looked to Mato, walking over to him. He handed the bug to him, speaking sternly.

“Eat it.” Mato quickly shoved the bug in his mouth. He quickly ate the bug, before speaking to Oro.

“That tasted pretty bad.” Oro responded.

“It doesn’t matter. You needed to eat.” Mato nodded, acknowledging the fact that Oro was right. Mato got up, quickly looking around. He spoke candidly and somewhat tersely.

“We have children to save.” Oro nodded, hoping that Mato got enough to eat. They walked around for a bit, discovering a path leading down. They followed the path coming across a large door. Mato struck the door with his nail, leaving a dent in the door. He struck again, this time where the door was attached to the wall of the area. Oro joined in, attacking the other side of the door.

After a while, the door fell to the ground away from them, landing with a great thud. Mato looked inside, barely making out figures in the vast darkness. They had horns, some had side horns, others didn’t have side horns. Oro looked into the darkness, seeing all the children. He looked at Mato, his voice sounding choleric.

“Well? Are we going to save the children, or are we just going to stand here?” Mato shook his head, walking into the darkness. Oro followed him, taking a quick look around. He noticed wispy threads of what looked like what made up their children’s bodies. He touched one of the threads, curiosity getting the better of him. He noted that it felt cold, icy even. He pulled his hand back, grimacing. Mato looked at him curiously. He then looked at the wisps of black in the air. He went to touch one before being stopped by Oro. Oro spoke, voice terse and candid.

“Don’t touch that! It’s like ice!” Mato responded.

“Is that why you were shaking your hand?” Oro nodded, slightly abashed. They then hopped onto the platform below them to get a better look at the figures in the darkness. They noticed the figures were watching them fearfully, but also a little curiously. Mato crouched down, wanting to look less intimidating. Oro followed suit, crouching down. Mato spoke softly, his voice sounding belligerent.

“It’s okay, little ones. We won’t hurt you. We’re here to save you.” He heard fifteen voices in his head, filled with fear, hope, longing, happiness, among other feelings.

“Save? Not hurt? Hurt? No? No hurt!” He watched as a child with curved horns that forked at the end and no side horns stepped forth. He heard the child shush the others to speak.

“Come with. Promise not to hurt?” Mato nodded. The child then pointed to Oro. Oro nodded. Mato then heard the child speak again in his head, to the other children.

“Come on. Siblings will be safe. I go. Come with?” Mato watched in a mixture of awe, blithe, and bewilderment as all of the children agreed with the child. The child got all of the children to follow, quickly reaching Mato and Oro. Mato and Oro helped the children get back up to where the entrance was. Mato and Oro got up to where the children were, leading them out of the area. All the children covered their eyes, uncovering them after a couple minutes. Mato and Oro lead the children back to Mato’s hut in Howling Cliffs. They opened the door to reveal Sheo and Crystal painting, and Elisha, Hunter, and Ram playing tag. Sheo looked at Mato and Oro, then the children they had brought with them.

Sheo walked over, giving Mato and Oro hugs, tears streaming down his face. He then turned to the children, giving them permission to go play with the others. Mato and Oro told Sheo about rescuing the children, and finding them. Oro then told Sheo about how Mato forgot food for the trip. Mato glared at Oro, who was chuckling along with Sheo. They watched the children play, and eat. Sheo, Oro, and Mato then tucked the children into bed. They then also went to take a nap, knowing that they were probably going to be up all night helping their children through nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oro: *To Ghost* Say Oro!  
Ghost: Oreo!


	17. Acid Accident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal falls in the acid in Greenpath because a Mosscreep bumped into her. Mato rushes her to Sheo. Sheo takes care of the acid burns (both on Crystal and Mato). Crystal's vision is now blurry.

Mato looked at his eight children. There was Crystal, Ghost, Sigil, Lina, Shel, Rinka, Pin, and Nata. He spoke, his children turning to look at him, their heads tilted.

“Today, I thought we could all head to Sheo’s to let you all play with more of your siblings.” All of his children starting jumping up and down excitedly. He heard Crystal’s voice in his head, her voice easily conveying how happy she was.

“We’re visiting Sheo! I can see Elisha again!” Mato nodded, getting all of the children in a straight line to make it safer for them to follow him through Howling Cliffs, all the way to Greenpath. They followed him out of the house, watching in awe as he easily struck down any bug that dared threaten him or his kids. They quickly got to the Forgotten Crossroads. Mato carefully led them to Greenpath. He made sure nobody got too close to the acid. He got the group around halfway to Sheo’s hut. Sheo had made it easier to get to his hut, knowing that he would have visitors often. Mato turned to Crystal, watching her play tag with Nata. He realized they were too close to the edge. They were practically standing on the edge sometimes. He called for Nata and Crystal to get closer to him as he saw a Mosscreep walking around. Sure, he could handle it, but he cared about his kids’ safety more than showing off his strength. Nata ran over to him, Crystal lagging behind.

He watched in horror as the Mosscreep bumped into Crystal, knocking her off balance. She futilely reached out to him as she fell into the acid. He rushed over, hearing the acid bubbling as it started trying to dissolve her. He instinctively reached out, grabbing her, doing his best to ignore the burning feeling as the acid starting burning his arm, trying to dissolve it. He pulled out of the acid, cradling her to his chest. He seemed to be asleep, but he knew she wasn’t napping. He got up, hurrying in the direction of Sheo’s hut, his children following. He barged into Sheo’s house. Sheo turned around, his face belligerent until his eyes fell upon Mato and Crystal, cradled in his arms. Mato felt tears falling down his face. He spoke, his voice filled with urgency and worry.

“Sheo, please help! I don’t know what to do! She fell into the acid! What do I do?” Sheo spoke, voice steady and calm, trying to help Mato calm down.

“Mato, hand her here. I know what to do about the acid burns from the acid around Greenpath.” Mato quickly handed Crystal to Sheo, tears streaming down Mato’s face. Mato got a good look at her. The left side of her mask was completely corroded, exposing her shade. He saw acid burns littering her small body. He grimaced, wondering how he could have let this happen. He came back to reality just as Sheo was finishing flushing her burns with water. He watched as Sheo grabbed a sponge, getting it damp with soapy water. He noticed Crystal’s shirt laying in a pile, soaked. He thought to himself.

“I’ll have to get her a new shirt.” He heard Sheo call him over, quickly walking over to him. He noticed his children were now playing with Sheo’s children. Sheo handed him a shirt. He then spoke, noticing Mato giving him a bemused look.

“She won’t be able to wear that shirt anymore, it’s completely drenched in acid.” Mato nodded, going to put the shirt on Crystal, before being stopped by Sheo. Sheo spoke.

“I have to bandage her burns first, Mato. Then, you can put her new shirt on.” Mato nodded, watching him bandage her up. Sheo bandaged her up, making sure she could still move once she woke up. After a couple hours, she woke up. Mato felt relief flood through him. His relief was cut short when he heard Crystal cough and she covered her eyes. She kept coughing. He watched in concern and worry as a black substance came from her mask, in between her hands. It pooled in front of her on the bed. He heard her voice filled with fear in his head.

“Dad, I’m scared. It hurts! My eyes hurt a lot... Dad, where are you? I hear my siblings. They sound like they’re having fun. That’s good.” Mato watched as she shivered, quickly wrapping her in a blanket. He spoke, voice calm and soft.

“You fell in the acid in Greenpath. Can Sheo rinse your eyes with water?” Crystal uncovered her eyes to let Sheo flush her eyes. She blinked a couple times, turning to Mato. He spoke.

“Crystal, can you see?” Crystal spoke, her voice in his head.

“Everything’s kind of blurry.” Mato let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Sheo spoke.

“Mato, you and your children can sleep here tonight. It’s fine with me.” Mato nodded, excusing himself to the bathroom. He looked in the mirror, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. Soon, he was weeping. He heard a knock at the door. He heard Sheo’s voice.

“Are you okay?” Mato opened the door. Sheo looked at him, getting a tissue and handing it to him. Sheo gave him a hug, patting him on the back. Sheo spoke again.

“I’m here for you if you need anything.” Mato hugged him back, sobbing. He spoke through sobs.

“Thank you, Sheo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: I need to write another chapter! *gets on the train of thought*  
  
Me: *looks at train's name* This isn't the right train! This is the angst train! Let me off!  
  
The conductor/my brain: Sorry, but we can't stop until we get to our destination.  
  
Me: What is the destination?  
  
The conductor/my brain: Suffering that'll make you want to stop writing, but you won't because you need to finish this chapter.  
  
Me: Great. Just what this fanfic needs. More suffering. /s


	18. Sheo, the Grubsitter (of 18 Children)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sheo grubsits his children, Oro's children, and Mato's children. He wonders if he can get paid in the future.

Mato looked over to Crystal, sleeping on the bed in Sheo’s living room. He watched all of Crystal’s siblings running after each other. Oro had brought his children over to Sheo’s hut. He watched as she woke up, and glanced over at her siblings. She then turned her attention to him, projecting her most frequent thought to him.  
  
“Am I ever going to be able to play with them again?” He sat down next to her, careful to give her some space. He turned to her, wiping tears from her face. He spoke, his voice benevolent.  
  
“You will, Crystal. I promise. Do you want to go get your mask fixed at the Mask Maker in Deepnest, or no?” Crystal shook her head. She then spoke in his head.  
  
“I don’t want to deal with that _thing_ again. I don’t like it. It scared me. It still scares me.” Mato nodded understandingly. He spoke.  
  
“It’s okay to be scared, Crystal. We won’t go until you’re ready.” Crystal wrapped her arms around Mato in a hug. He then had a brief look of realization on his face. He then spoke, hoping that his temporary solution would work.  
  
“Would you go if Oro came with us?” Crystal thought for a moment before nodding. Mato yelled in Oro’s direction.  
  
“Oro, please come over here!” Oro came over, a look of irritation on his face. He spoke, letting out a huff.  
  
“What?” Mato spoke, slightly abashed.  
  
“I was wondering if you would come with Crystal and me to go to the Mask Maker?” Oro nodded. Oro turned to Sheo. A look of realization crossed Sheo’s face before Oro could speak. Sheo spoke.  
  
“I’m the grubsitter, aren’t I?” Oro nodded, Mato chuckling slightly. Mato and Oro headed out the door, Crystal in tow. Sheo looked at all eighteen of Crystal’s siblings. He silently pondered to himself if he could get Oro or Mato to pay him for watching this many children on such short notice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mato and Oro: *come back because they forgot something (probably food)*
> 
> Sheo: *glaring at Mato and Oro* I want 400 geo when you two get back.


	19. The Orange in My Eyes is a Gift (Nevermind, It Isn't)

Oro realized they were probably lost. He spoke, hoping he was wrong. He also wondered why Mato was humming.  
  


“Mato, do you know where we are?” Mato responded, abashed.  
  


“No, I wish I did.” Oro glared at him, following behind him. He watched as Mato felt the wall. It was really dark here. Oro wondered how much a lamp would cost. Oro felt the ground rumble and the ground being torn through by a bug with large mandibles. Oro screamed.  
  


“Mato, watch out!” Mato jumped back, almost knocking Oro backward onto the ground. Oro took a moment to steady himself, before turning back to Mato. Mato spoke, voice belligerent.  
  


”Thanks, Oro. That was a rather big bug.” Oro noticed that Crystal was very quiet, which only happened when she was asleep. He remarked on that fact.  
  


”Mato, I think you hummed Crystal to sleep.” Mato nodded, speaking as he did so.  
  


”I hope so, she’s really scared of this place.” Mato spoke again, voice slightly despondent.  
  


”I’m trying to make it more bearable for her.”  
  


Crystal awoke in a place surrounded by clouds. She stood up, looking around. She noticed a very bright light in the distance. It kept getting brighter. She heard a voice, it sounded feminine. It instantly calmed her down a bit.

”Child, what would you trade to get rid of the pain of your past?” She responded instinctively.

”Anything.” She heard the voice chuckle as she woke up. She saw Mato was still carrying her. She heard the voice from her dream in her head.

”Kill the Nailmasters.” She was shocked, responding quickly.

”What? I can’t hurt my dad!” She heard the voice speak again, voice becoming acerbic. Crystal was becoming quite disconcerted.

”He’ll only get in the way.” Crystal was silent, realizing the voice didn’t care what she wanted. The voice spoke again, commanding.

”Kill them both.” Crystal heard Mato speak, voice sounding concerned.

“Crystal, are you okay?” She heard him speak again.

“Crystal?” She heard Oro speak before cutting himself off.

“Mato, her eyes…” She heard Mato respond.

“What about them?” She heard Mato’s voice full of worry and concern. He sounded sad. She wondered why.

“Oh no.” She heard the sound of a nail dropping to the ground, it clattering as it hit the ground. She heard Oro speak, sounding alarmed.

”Mato, she’s got your nail!” She watched as he threw his nail to Mato. She heard Oro yell.

”Mato, catch!” She watched Mato catch his nail, glancing over to Oro. Mato spoke, his voice completely despondent.

“Oro, I don’t think I can hurt her.” She heard Oro sigh as he responded.

“You have to, Mato.” She heard Oro speak.

“You have to kill her.” She heard Oro speak again, his voice breaking.

”She’s infected.” She heard her dad speak, and watched as tears fell from his face.

”I’m so sorry, Crystal.” She felt something pierce her abdomen, but there wasn’t any pain. She then felt an intense tingle in her abdomen. Her abdomen felt warm, then burning. She wondered what was going on with her. She looked down, seeing Oro’s nail lodged in her abdomen. She doubled over as immense pain flooded her abdomen. She felt tears falling from her face. She heard herself screaming in pain. Her vision went black. Mato rushed over, scooping her into his arms. He spoke, hoping Oro remembered where the hot spring was.

”Oro, where’s the hot spring?” Oro quickly lead him to the hot spring. After a while, she woke up. She opened her eyes, noticing a hot spring. She spoke, voice wary and curious.

”Where am I?” Mato spoke, voice still despondent.

”We had to rush you to the hot spring.” Oro spoke, receiving a glare from Mato.

”You almost died.” Mato spoke, tears falling from his eyes.

”Because of me.” Crystal spoke, trying to reach her dad. 

When she moved too much, it sent a flare of pain throughout her abdomen, so she figured staying still was a better idea.  
”Dad.” She spoke again.

”It’s okay.” Mato looked completely bemused and started sobbing.

”I almost killed you! How is that okay?” Crystal spoke, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.

”I forgive you, Dad.” She realized she didn’t remember everything. She spoke.

”Dad, what happened?” Mato looked to Oro, grimacing and sweating bullets. She spoke again, looking at Oro.

”How did I almost die?” Oro spoke, letting out a sigh.

  
”You got infected. We had to defend ourselves.” Mato spoke, voice a mixture of despondency and brusquity.

”I’m sorry. I should have warned you about her.” Crystal was bemused. She spoke again, intrigued.

”About who?” Mato spoke, trying to keep from crying again.

”The Radiance. She caused the infection.” Crystal wondered to herself if that was the feminine voice in her dream. She figured it was though, so she didn’t ask. She tried to get up, only to yelp in pain. She fell back into the water. Mato walked over and carefully picked her up. He started rubbing her back. He walked closer to an exit and turned to Oro. He spoke.

”Oro, is this the way to the Mask Maker?” Oro spoke, sounding rather belligerent.

”You really expect me to remember this stuff?” Mato shrugged. They headed through the exit Mato found. After a while, Mato thought out loud.

”We really need to get a map of this place.” Mato was interrupted by Oro’s snarky reply.

”You think!?” He heard Oro snarkily add onto his reply.

”We’ve been wandering around aimlessly for the past who knows how long!” After a while, they finally stumbled across a familiar area. They saw the Mask Maker had made the entrance bigger for them. Mato spoke enthusiastically.

”Oro, we finally found the Mask Maker!” They headed into the Mask Maker’s burrow. The Mask Maker spoke upon seeing them.

”Oh, you two again.” Mato spoke, trying to sound as belligerent as possible.

”Yup.” Oro spoke, his voice icy.

”What a way to treat your customers.” Mato jabbed Oro in the side and whispered.

”Oro, you aren’t helping.” Oro spoke, letting out a huff.

”Fine, I’ll just go outside.” Mato huffed, watching him leave the room. He yelled after him.

”Fine!” The Mask Maker turned to him, concern in their voice.

”Do you two normally fight like that?” Mato let out a sigh and spoke, despondency in his voice.

”No, things have been tense lately.” The Mask Maker spoke again, intrigued.

”How come?” Mato spoke, voice wavering, the stress of everything finally catching up to him.

”Crystal’s mask got corroded by acid.” The Mask Maker turned to Crystal and spoke.

”Crystal, can you come here?” Crystal ran over and laid down on the table. She grunted in discomfort and spoke.

”You should get some pillows for your table.” The Mask Maker spoke, investigating the damage from the acid to her mask.

”Yes, maybe I should.” The Mask Maker had Crystal get off the table and turned to Mato.

”I’ll have to get all the stuff to fix her mask.” Mato responded, worry etched into his face.

”How long do you think that’ll take?” The Mask Maker let out a sigh and responded.

”Quite a while. The stuff that the vessels’ masks are made out of can only be found in the Ancient Basin.” Mato had a flash of realization across his face.

”I think I went there, is it brownish-gray? Really dark?” The Mask Maker responded.

”Yup.” Mato spoke, looking bemused.

”I didn’t see anything that resembles her mask.” The Mask Maker spoke.

”It’s hidden deep underground.” Mato’s face fell a bit. He spoke.

”Oh, that’s probably why then.” The Mask Maker nodded, then spoke.

”I assume you might know where the children came from?” Mato nodded, then spoke.

”The place behind the door?” The Mask Maker spoke, nodding.

”The Abyss is its name. Rather dark.” Mato spoke, bemused.

”Rather dark seems to be an understatement. I could barely see anything.” The Mask Maker chuckled.

”You aren’t used to the dark, I take it?” Mato spoke.

”Fair point.” The Mask Maker continued.

”Anyway, that’s where the ingredients to make a new mask are.” Mato was slightly bemused, evident on his face.

”What ingredients?” The Mask Maker let out a sigh.

”Well, I have a suspicion you might not like the answer.” 

Mato glared at the Mask Maker as if saying, _try me_. Mato spoke, still glaring slightly.

”Tell me.” The Mask Maker spoke candidly.

”Alright, I have to grind up the masks that are broken. I then combine soul and water.” Mato was shocked.

”You grind up the masks of dead children?!” The Mask Maker sneered.

”I told you that you wouldn’t like the answer.” Mato spoke.

”What do you use the soul and water solution for?” The Mask Maker spoke.

”I add the grinded up masks to the solution.” Mato spoke, trying to get that image out of his head.

”Then what?” The Mask Make spoke.

”I mold the mixture into a mask shape for vessels. It’ll start drying, retaining the shape.” Mato spoke, bemused as to how the Mask Maker knew all this.

”Oh. That’s interesting.” The Mask Maker spoke.

”Indeed.” The Mask Maker spoke again.

”Her mask will be done in about a week.” Mato spoke.

”Okay, thank you.” Mato reached into his pocket, pulling out a silk bag with a string tied in a knot at the top. He went to hand it to the Mask Maker.

”Here’s 5000 geo.” The Mask Maker pushed away the bag, speaking as they did so.

”Keep it.” Mato was bemused.

”What? Don’t I need to pay you?” The Mask Maker shook their head and spoke.

”This one’s on the house.” Mato was ecstatic.

”Oh! Thank you!” Crystal spoke, her voice in Mato and the Mask Maker’s heads.

”Thank you, Mr. Mask Maker.” The Mask Maker smiled, chuckling. They spoke.

”Just Mask Maker is fine.” Crystal nodded, speaking.

”Okay.”


	20. First Molt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal molts. Mato freaks out at first. She has wings now.

Mato and Oro opened the door, Mato carrying Crystal in his arms. He heard Sheo scream.

“Help, I’m being swarmed by children!” Mato looked at his brother, completely covered in children. Mato chuckled, earning a glare from Sheo. Sheo yelled at him.

“I’m going to drown in children!” Oro walked over, chuckling. They watched as all the children let go as Sheo fell backward. All the children scurried back, piling on Sheo. Oro and Mato watched as Crystal ran up to Sheo, joining the pile. They heard Sheo scream.

“Avenge me, brothers!” Mato turned to the children, gesturing for them to get off of his brother. They scurried away, leaving Mato to help Sheo up. Sheo rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly before speaking.

“Please pay me next time.” Mato nodded, handing Sheo 400 geo. Sheo, Mato, and Oro sent the kids to bed. Sheo, Mato, and Oro also went to bed. They quickly fell asleep. Mato felt someone shaking him. He snapped awake, looking at the assailant. He heard Sheo speak, his face barely visible in the darkness of the room.

“Mato, I think Crystal is dead. Keywords:  _ I think _ .” Mato immediately got out of bed, running to Crystal’s bed. He spoke.

“Crystal, you okay?” He didn’t receive a response. This caused him to panic. He noticed Crystal starting to move, quelling his worries. He heard Oro yell from the other room.

“Is she even alive in there?” He yelled back that she was okay. Oro came into the room, looking at her. Mato realized that she was essentially shedding her skin, along with a see-through covering on her mask. Oro was extremely bemused.

“What...” Mato was equally bemused. Oro spoke.

“Is she breathing?” Sheo spoke, worrying them all again.

“No, she isn’t.” Mato pointed out she was still shedding her skin, so she’s still alive. It reminded Mato of the Grubs that he had seen shedding their skin. They decided to wait and see what happened. They woke up everyday and checked on Crystal. Everyday, she was fine. They woke up, and checked on Crystal. They didn’t see her in her bed, instead the skin that she had been shedding was laying on her bed. Mato heard Crystal’s voice and a tug on his cloak. He turned to see Crystal, slightly taller. Her horns were longer as well. Mato spoke.

“Your siblings and us have been worried sick.  _ Literally  _ for some. Your molt took 3 days.” Crystal grimaced and then spoke.

“I was out for that long?” Mato nodded. Crystal responded.

“Oh.” Mato then noticed silvery wings hanging from her back. They shimmered in the light. He spoke, overjoyed.

“Crystal, you have wings!” Crystal fluttered her wings, catching the attention of her siblings. All of her siblings spoke.

“Crystal has wings!” Crystal flapped her wings, launching herself into the air. She flew around a little, almost crashing into stuff, but having fun nonetheless. She yelled excitedly.

“I’m flying!” Oro turned to Sheo and spoke.

“What did Crystal go through?” Sheo answered candidly.

“She molted.”


	21. Lost

Crystal carefully snuck out of Mato’s house. She wanted to go explore the surrounding area. She flapped her wings, taking off into the sky. She flew around for a bit, noticing a shimmering object. She landed poorly, hearing a loud snapping sound as she rolled.

  
Mato noticed Crystal was gone. He turned to Oro, hoping that he knew where she was.

  
“Oro, have you seen Crystal?” Oro shook his head, answering.

  
“No, I haven’t seen her.” Mato tried to push the panic down, turning to Sheo. Mato’s voice started to waver, fearing the worst.

  
“Sheo, help me. I lost Crystal.” Sheo realized that Mato was panicking. He spoke, gripping Mato’s shoulders gently.

  
“Mato, breathe. Just breathe for a bit.” Mato inhaled and let out a shaky exhale. He hoped that Crystal hadn’t wandered off too far.

  
Crystal spoke, tears threatening to overflow at any moment. “My leg really hurts…” She spoke, hoping she wasn’t too far from home.  
“Dad? Uncle Sheo? Uncle Oro?” She didn’t get an answer, so she asked the next logical thing.

  
“Is anybody there?” She realized she was all alone. She felt tears running down her face. Her voice wavered with fear.“I want my dad…”

She noticed snow starting to fall from the sky, it chilling her mask.“It’s so cold…” She noticed an empty cavern and went into it. She realized a major problem.  
“I’m lost...” She looked down at her right leg, noticing it was twisted. She looked away, quickly becoming nauseated at the sight. She carefully sat down on the ground, letting out a yelp as pain flared in her leg. Tears fell from her face as she got another look at her leg.

  
She heard Mato’s voice in the distance. “Crystal?” 

  
She yelled in her head, hoping Mato heard her. “Dad!” She heard quick footsteps as Mato hurried in her direction.

  
Mato helped her up. She noticed Sheo had come along too. Sheo noticed her limp. “Crystal, are you okay?” Crystal shakily nodded.

  
Mato noticed how she was walking. “You’re limping.”

  
Crystal toppled forward as sharp pain flared in her leg. She heard Mato scream as he caught her. “Crystal!”

  
She heard Sheo comment on her leg. “Mato, I think she has an oblique fracture. Probably displaced as well judging by the looks of it.”  
She felt Sheo grab her leg as Mato hugged her tight. “Sorry, but I’m going to have to set the bone. It’s going to hurt, but it’s necessary.” She sobbed as Sheo set the bone.

  
“Dad, it hurts…” Mato hugged her, wiping the tears from her face.

  
Mato spoke, trying to comfort his child. “It’s going to be okay.”

  
Crystal spoke, a silent yawn escaping her. “Dad, I’m tired…”

  
Mato spoke, trying to sound as calm as he could. He was wondering how she got hurt. “Stay awake a little longer, okay?” He heard Sheo speak.

  
“Hand me that stick.” He handed Sheo a stick nearby. Sheo held the stick against Crystal's leg.

  
Sheo spoke, voice calm. “Do you have any bandages?” Mato checked his bag, pulling out a roll of bandages. He handed them to Sheo.

  
“Here.” Sheo took the bandages, carefully wrapping Crystal’s leg and the stick.

  
Crystal turned to Mato, yawning. “Dad, can you carry me?” Mato complied.

  
“Of course.” Mato carried Crystal back home, Sheo in tow.

  
Crystal heard her siblings exclaim in happiness. “Crystal’s okay!” She watched Elisha make his way through the crowd as Mato laid her on her bed.

  
Elisha gave Crystal a hug, squeezing her gently. Crystal heard Elisha’s voice in her head. “Missed you.”

  
Crystal responded, hugging Elisha back, both showing no signs of letting go anytime soon. “I missed you too, Elisha.”


	22. Elisha's Molt

Crystal turned to her siblings, comforting them as Elisha started to molt. She spoke, voice soft and calm.  
“I went through this, remember?” Her siblings nodded, wiping tears from their eyes. She showed them her wings, trying to remind them that when they molt, they get wings. She turned to Elisha, who was squirming and moving, slowly shedding his old exoskeleton. She turned to them, speaking again.  
“He’ll be okay.” She hugged her siblings, telling them what happens during a molt.  
“First, the covering on your mask and skin gets really uncomfortable, so you want to be more comfortable so you can grow.” Her siblings nodded, understanding that. She spoke again.  
“You struggle, shedding your old skin and mask covering. It helps you grow when you molt.” She continued.  
“When you shed your skin, you get taller, your horns get longer, and you get wings.” Her siblings nodded. She spent the next 3 days watching Elisha molt. She kept her siblings from pulling on his shed skin, since he was still molting. She awoke to the sounds of Elisha crawling out of his shed skin. She turned to him and spoke.  
“Elisha, you’re taller! Look at your wings! Your horns are longer!” Elisha looked at his wings, shimmering in the light of the house. He had three wing layers unlike Crystal’s two layers. Elisha turned to Crystal, head tilted, and spoke.  
“Crystal, can you teach me to fly?” Crystal nodded, flapping her wings slowly to let him copy her wing movement. She watched as he copied her wing movements. She sped up the movements, lifting herself into the air, hovering off the ground. Elisha copied, hovering off the ground with Crystal. Elisha beamed.  
“Thank you! Dad, I’m flying!” Oro ran into the room and saw Elisha hovering, Crystal beside him. Mato looked once he entered the room. They heard Elisha’s voice in their heads.  
“Crystal taught me!” Mato chuckled, turning to Crystal.  
“That was awfully nice of you, Crystal.” Crystal spoke.  
“He’s my brother. Why wouldn’t I help him?” Mato shrugged, letting Crystal and Elisha fly outside as he watched.


	23. Deepnest Buddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal and Mato go to Deepnest. Crystal finds an uninfected weaverling, who becomes her buddy.

Mato turned to Crystal, wondering if it would be a good idea to bring her to Deepnest. He shivered as he remembered the orange glow in her eyes when she had gotten infected. Crystal turned to him as he spoke.  
“Crystal, I’m going to Deepnest to get your new mask, do you want to come with me?” Crystal silently pondered for a moment, responding as her voice quivered slightly.  
“Okay.” She grabbed a nail. Elisha had taught her the basics of defending herself, so she figured she’d be fine. Mato and her headed out the door, heading towards Deepnest.   
They quickly got to Deepnest, Crystal walking beside Mato in the narrow tunnels. She watched as Mato pulled a lamp with a small, glowing bug inside of it out of his cloak. Crystal watched as the small bug lit up the surrounding area with ease.She noticed a small six-legged bug in the way, it tenderly clutching a broken leg to its underside. She slowly got down on her hands and knees, scooting towards the bug. The bug glanced up at her, black eyes full of apprehension.  
  
She carefully picked up the bug, tenderly holding it to her chest. She walked over to Mato, letting him look at the bug.  
She spoke through her thoughts, voice full of concern. “Dad, its leg is hurt.”  
  
Mato looked at the bug, speaking softly as not to alarm the bug. “It’s okay, little one. I won’t hurt you.” The small bug nestled itself into Crystal’s shirt. They continued, quickly getting to the Mask Maker’s burrow. They headed inside, hearing the Mask Maker’s gruff voice as he spoke.  
  
“Ah, you two are back. I just finished her mask.” It was only half a mask, built to accommodate the remaining portion of Crystal’s mask. The Mask Maker carefully put it on Crystal’s head, securing it with glue on the inside. He patted Crystal on the head, causing the bug in her arms to stir. The Mask Maker took notice of the bug in her arms, looking at it curiously. He spoke, his bemusion evident in his voice.  
  
“You managed to find an uninfected weaverling? Maybe there’s hope for this doomed kingdom.” Crystal nodded, letting the weaverling nestle into her shirt once more. She walked over, patting the Mask Maker.  
  
She spoke, voice soft. “It’ll be okay.” The Mask Maker nodded. Mato and Crystal walked out of the room, heading back home.  
  
After a while, they reached the house. Mato opened the door, being greeted by Oro and Sheo being completely covered in children. The weaverling moved to Crystal’s shoulder, causing her siblings to look at her. They quickly ran over, looking at the weaverling. Crystal reached over, patting the weaverling. The weaverling crawled onto Crystal’s hand, settling onto the back of her hand.  
  
Her siblings quietly looked at the weaverling. Ghost turned to her, voice full of awe. “Not infected?” Crystal shook her head. The weaverling jumped to Ghost, landing in his cloak. The weaverling quickly climbed onto Ghost’s shoulder. It nuzzled the side of Ghost’s mask before jumping back to Crystal.  
  
Crystal turned as Mato walked into the room, carrying six plates with four grilled cheeses per plate. He sat them down on a table in the corner. Crystal and her siblings ran over, quickly grabbing a grilled cheese for each of them. Crystal realized Elisha was having trouble getting a grilled cheese, getting jostled around by their siblings. Crystal handed Elisha the grilled cheese in her hands. Elisha looked at her, silently asking the question. _Are you sure I can have it?_ Crystal nodded.


	24. Mistaken Identity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mato, Oro, and Sheo bring a vessel into the house. The vessel looks erriely similar to Crystal and the other siblings' dad. Crystal isn't too happy with their dad and the meeting of her and the vessel goes about as well as you'd expect. Mato goes into the Wastelands after a fight and loses his memories temporarily. Sheo gets hurt.

Mato turned to Sheo upon seeing the new vessel. He spoke, stating the obvious. “They look eerily similar to their dad.”

Sheo looked at him, replying nonchalantly. “It’ll be fine.”

  
Oro turned to Sheo, raising his voice, disgusted by his brother’s reply. “No, it won’t! They look too similar to their dad!”

  
Mato turned to Sheo, glaring at him. “Sheo, have you forgotten who caused their trauma?”

  
Sheo shook his head, reply sounding somewhat despondent. “No, I haven’t. I just hope that it’ll work out.”

  
Oro turned to him, stating his thoughts on the matter. “The kids are going to freak out!”

  
Mato carried the vessel into the room, hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. He turned to Crystal, when he felt the new child jump out of his arms. He watched as Crystal grabbed her nail, dropping into a defensive stance. She held the nail in front of her and her siblings.

  
Crystal practically yelled, voice unusually loud and angry, “Get away from my siblings!”

  
Mato yelled, “Everyone, get behind me!” He didn’t want anyone to get hurt. He watched as Elisha carefully walked closer to Crystal.

  
Elisha spoke, voice soft and worried, “Crystal?” He was scared, he had never seen Crystal like this.

  
Crystal screamed, rushing towards the sibling that looked like their dad. “I won’t let you hurt them anymore!”

  
Mato screamed, hoping that his voice could snap her out of whatever _this_ was. “Crystal!”

  
Elisha spoke, tears falling from his face. “Crystal, it’s okay.”

  
Crystal spoke, her voice shaking as tears fell from her face. “He’ll hurt us again!”

  
Crystal turned to the sibling that looked like their dad. “Tell me why you threw us away!” The crowned sibling just stared at her.

  
Elisha hugged Crystal tight, both their tears falling onto the ground with a quiet _plop._ “Crystal, it’s okay. He’s not Pale Crown.”

  
Crystal shook her head, tears falling from her eyes. “How can you say that? Surely you see the resemblance.” Crystal spoke again. “He’s standing right there!” She barely registered the sound of metal scraping against the ground.

  
Oro screamed in alarm. “He’s got a nail!” Crystal heard a _squelch_ as she closed her eyes. She then felt something cold run down her leg as she collapsed forward. She felt someone grab her, quickly turning her where she could see them. She opened her eyes.

  
She heard Mato speak, voice wavering as tears fell from his eyes. “Crystal, look at me.” She just wanted to close her eyes. She was so tired.  
Mato spoke, gently shaking her awake. “Please, stay awake a little longer.”

  
Mato spoke again, tears falling from his eyes. “I can’t lose you.” She wondered what he was talking about, she was fine, _right?_

  
She heard Sheo speak as she fell unconscious. “It’s going to be okay.” Mato laid her on her bed, quickly tending to her wounds.

  
Mato turned to Sheo, wiping the tears from his face. They were quickly replaced by fresh tears. “It’s not okay, and it never will be. Not anymore.” Mato turned to the child that he had brought in, clutching his great nail in his hand. He felt rage and grief consume him. He got up, slashing at the child. He heard the child fall to the ground with a sickening _squelch_. He heard someone gasp.

  
He heard Sheo speak, not wanting to believe what he just witnessed. “Mato, you killed him...” Mato walked towards him, wanting to explain. Sheo raised his great nail, pointing it at Mato.

  
Sheo screamed, tears falling from his face. “Stay away from me!” He didn’t think Mato would be this _evil,_ not after everything they’ve been through together.

  
Oro screamed, threatening Mato with his nail. “You’re not my brother!”

  
Elisha whimpered, tears falling from his face. “I’m scared.”

  
Oro turned to Mato, glaring at him. ”Leave now!”

  
Mato screamed, tears falling from his face. ”Fine!”

  
Oro and Sheo watched over the kids for a couple days, slowly starting to worry about their brother.  
Sheo finally gave into his worries, letting out a sigh as he spoke. “Oro, it’s been three days, I’m starting to get worried.”

  
Oro huffed, replying, slight anger in his voice.“Mato will come back when he’s ready.”

  
Sheo walked towards the door, glancing over his shoulder as he spoke. ”Oro, I’m going to go look for him.”

  
Oro replied, watching Sheo leave the house. ”Okay, I’ll watch the kids.”

  
Sheo noticed a piece of Mato’s cape caught in the snow around the Howling Cliffs. Sheo shuddered as he made a frightening revelation. He remembered the stories of bugs losing any memories of who they were. ”Oh no. He went into the Wastelands.” He ran into the wastelands, hoping he could reach his brother in time. He saw a silhouette in the distance, a great nail clutched in their hand.

  
Sheo yelled, hoping it was Mato. ”Mato?”

  
Mato turned to him, frowning as he looked at Sheo. ”Who are you? How do you know my name?”

  
Sheo felt tears fall from his face. He blurted out what he was thinking. ”Please tell me this is some kind of sick prank!”

  
Sheo felt despair, hopelessness, and a small bit of anger. ”You _really_ forgot about us?”

  
Mato looked bemused, letting out a small chuckle. ”Who are you talking about?”

  
Sheo spoke, hoping that Mato ”Your brother, Oro, and me!”

  
Mato shook his head, pointing his nail at Sheo. ”Liar. I have no brothers.”

  
Sheo was alarmed. He hoped he could calm Mato down before someone got hurt. ”Mato, please! Please put your nail down!”

  
Mato scoffed. ”Tell me what you’re trying to do.”

  
Sheo felt tears fall from his face, voice wavering as he spoke. ”I just want my brother back.” He felt something slice across his abdomen and chest. He felt blood run down his front. He tried to sit down, feeling light-headed. He fell onto his back, letting out a grunt of pain. He noticed Mato was now out of the Wastelands.

  
Mato spoke as he carefully helped him out of the Wastelands. ”Sheo?”

  
Sheo fell to the ground, feeling tears fall from his face as he spoke. “Mato… It’s good… to have you… back…” He turned to Mato and smiled, then everything went dark.

  
Mato screamed, frantically shaking Sheo. ”I’m so sorry!”

Mato gave Sheo a gentle hug before turning to the direction of his hut. ”Please, just hold on!”  
Mato ran in the direction of his hut, but not before telling the now unconscious Sheo what he was doing. ”I’ll go get help!”

Oro heard someone bust through the door, slightly shaking the hut. He turned, seeing his brother’s face.”Mato, you’re back! I’m so sorry for how I acted!” His relief was short-lived when he noticed the tears flowing down Mato’s cheeks.  
Oro spoke, giving Mato a tissue. ”Why are you crying?”

  
Mato spoke, voice breaking apart. ”Sheo needs help. Right now.”  
Mato led Oro to where Sheo was laying on the ground. On the way, he told him what happened between him and Sheo, earning a glare from Oro. Mato noticed the blood pooling around Sheo.

  
Oro lightly shook Sheo, hoping to get some kind of response. ”Sheo?”

  
Mato felt tears fall off his face, voice wavering as he spoke. He just wanted his brother to be okay. ”Please wake up…”  
Mato watched as Oro poured some hot spring water from a bottle over Sheo’s wounds. Mato watched as Sheo’s wounds healed almost instantly.

  
Sheo opened his eyes, blinking as he slowly took in his surroundings. He spoke, grunting as he tried to get into a sitting position. ”Where am I?”

  
Mato gave him a gentle hug. He felt shame and regret filling his insides. It was worse than eating a severely burned Crawlid. ”I’m sorry!”

  
Sheo gave Mato a hug back.”I already forgave you, Mato.”

  
Mato wiped the tears from his eyes. ”You did?”

  
Sheo spoke, hugging Mato tighter. ”I never blamed you. You shouldn’t blame yourself either.”

  
Mato felt tears run down his cheeks as he hugged Sheo back a little tighter. ”I’ll try not to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My original plan was to kill Sheo in this chapter, but I didn't. Maybe some other time?


	25. Sickness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal gets sick. Elisha runs away.

Crystal whimpered, tears pricking at the corner of her eyes. “Dad, I don’t feel good.” That was an understatement, she _really_ didn’t feel good.

  
Mato spoke, voice filled with concern. He knew kids would get sick, after all, he had gotten sick himself as a kid. Worry was etched into his face, however. He wasn’t expecting _his_ kids to get sick, it was never on his mind until now. “What’s wrong?”

  
Crystal wiped a black snot-like substance that was leaking out of her right eyehole. “My head hurts.” Her body quickly jerked forward, black snot coming from her eyehole, getting on Mato’s armor.

  
Mato grabbed a tissue. He spoke, “I’m going to clean your face real quick.” Crystal obliged, letting him clean the black snot from her face.

  
Crystal grimaced upon seeing her snot on her dad’s armor. “Sorry about your armor.”

  
Mato gave a reassuring smile to her, hoping to ease her worries about his armor (and possibly his well being). “It’s okay.” Mato reached into a cabinet, pulling out a small, dark bottle. He turned to Crystal, unscrewing the clear lid. He poured some of the liquid in the bottle. “Here’s some medicine. It’ll help you feel better.”

  
Crystal recoiled upon smelling the liquid. She looked at the label, it showing a purple orb of some kind. “It smells awful.”

  
Mato frowned, knowing the smell all too well. “I know, but it’ll help you feel better.” Crystal reluctantly dipped her hand into the medicine from the lid, it disappearing slowly. A small shudder passed through her body afterwards.

  
Crystal looked at Mato, hoping she’d never have to taste or smell that ever again. “The taste was worse than the smell.”

  
Mato frowned. “I know. I wish we had some better tasting medicine too.”

  
Crystal headed to her bed. “I’m going to go take a nap.”

  
Mato replied, knowing that rest could help a bug recover faster. “Alright, I’ll wake you up when breakfast is ready.” He watched as Crystal quickly fell asleep.  
Mato walked over to the kitchen area, quickly cooking a couple pieces of toast for Crystal. He knew toast could be easy on a bug’s stomach, which could be quite upset during the time when they were sick. He walked over to Crystal, gently shaking her awake. “Wake up, breakfast is ready.”

  
Crystal pouted as she replied. “Five more minutes?”

  
Mato replied. “Sure.” He made himself a couple pieces of toast, hoping Crystal would feel better soon. He heard a knock at the door. He quickly ran over to the door, opening it. He saw Sheo standing outside, none of his children with him.

  
Sheo spoke, worry etching itself onto his features upon noticing Crystal. “I thought you’d like some help with your children. It seems like you might need it.” Mato nodded. He smelled something burning. He ran over to the stove, charred toast staring back at him.

  
Mato walked over to Crystal, two pieces of unburnt toast on a plate in his hand. He gently shook her. “Wake up.” He was slightly concerned when she wouldn’t wake up at first, before panic quickly overtook him after five minutes.

  
Mato screamed, tears falling from his face. “This can’t be happening!” He shook a bit more, hoping she’d wake up. She didn’t respond, provoking more panic in Mato.  
Mato screamed again as more tears fell from his face. “Not to her!”

  
Mato turned to Sheo, fresh tears falling from his face.“Sheo, she won’t wake up!”

  
Sheo tried not to let his worry show, knowing it would just cause Mato to panic more. “Mato, it’ll be okay.”  
Sheo spoke, hoping that his idea would work. “Let’s take her to a hot spring.”  
Sheo clarified his idea a bit. “It’s her best chance at survival, aside from a snail shaman.”

  
Mato replied, worry biting at his insides. “First, let’s try the hot spring, if that doesn’t help, we take her to a snail shaman.”

  
Sheo agreed, unspoken worries churning in his head. “Alright, let’s go.” Sheo quickly dropped off Mato’s children at Oro’s hut, earning a glare from Oro.

  
Mato carried Crystal to the hot spring, laying her in it when they got to it. “Please be okay…”  
Mato waited days. The days of waiting turned into weeks of waiting. Crystal’s eyes stayed closed. “Please wake up…”

  
Sheo finally spoke, his fears confirmed. “Mato, I don’t think she’s going to wake up...”

  
Mato shook his head, not wanting to believe it. “Maybe it’s just taking longer than expected?” Tears were pricking at the corners of his eyes.

  
Sheo spoke, voice shaking as he spoke. “Mato, it’s been three weeks. No one stays asleep this long.”

  
Mato felt tears flow down his cheeks, but he didn’t care. He just wanted his kid to be okay. “She can’t be dead… She can’t...”

  
Sheo felt tears fall from his face. “Mato, she’s not going to wake up…”

  
Mato got up, clutching his nail in his hand. He sprinted over to the wall, stabbing it repeatedly as he cried and screamed. “She has to wake up! She can’t be dead!”  
Mato fell to the floor, all of his anger leaving him. Tears quickly flowed down his cheeks. ”She can’t be…”

  
Sheo walked over his brother, wrapping him in a hug. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”  
Sheo spoke, voice wavering as tears fell from his eyes. “Do you want me to tell Oro?”

  
Mato’s voice shook as he replied, tears flowing from his eyes. “Y-yeah.” He felt like his heart was ripped in two. Mato and Sheo walked to Oro’s hut in silence. Sheo opened the door to Oro’s hut. It only took one look for Oro to know something was amiss. Oro had the children play inside as he headed outside with Sheo.  
Sheo spoke as his voice shook. “Oro, Crystal died because of a sickness yesterday. Let me know if you need anything.” Oro let himself cry for a bit, realizing that he definitely should get his feelings out.  
Sheo spoke, wiping the tears from his face. “I’m going to tell the kids as well.”

  
Oro wiped the tears from his face, then yelled. “Kids, come here for a second!”

  
Elisha immediately noticed his sister wasn’t with Mato. “Where’s Crystal?”

  
Sheo exhaled. He spoke, trying not to cry again. “That’s what I need to talk to you all about.”  
Sheo spoke, tears starting to prick at the corners of his eyes again. “She died due to a sickness yesterday. We rushed her to a hot spring three weeks ago, but her body couldn’t fight the sickness any longer.”

  
Elisha yelled, tears running down his face. “She’s not dead! She can’t be dead! She can’t!”

  
Oro hated seeing his child in so much pain. “Elisha…”

  
Elisha yelled, voice breaking as he cried. “She can’t be dead! She can’t be…”

  
Oro spoke, wanting to comfort his kid. “Elisha.”

  
Elisha turned to the three Nailmasters. He screamed. “I hate you!” He flapped his wings, taking to the sky. He quickly flew away from the group, tears falling from his face.  
Oro felt tears fall from his face. He didn’t expect to hear that from any of his kids, even less from Elisha. “Elisha, come back!”

  
Sheo spoke, laying a hand on Oro’s shoulder. “Oro, give him space. He’s grieving.”

  
Mato felt a tug on his cape. He quickly turned, seeing a familiar vessel. He tried not to sound like he was about to break into a million pieces. “Huh? What is it, Ghost?”

  
Ghost spoke, sounding sad. “Hug.” Ghost spoke again, sounding like he was about to cry. “Miss Crystal.”

  
Mato felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes. His voice shook as he spoke. “I miss her too, Ghost. I miss her too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not crying, you're crying.


	26. Shades and Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal reappears as her shade. She finds her body and goes back home.

Crystal awoke in an almost pitch black area. She spoke, voice wavering as tears threatened to prick at the corners of her eyes. “Dad?” She spoke again, hoping someone would answer. “Elisha?” She was starting to become scared, hoping she wasn’t alone in this place. “Uncle Sheo?” She spoke again, frantically looking around into the darkness surrounding her. “Uncle Oro?” She yelled into the darkness, knowing that nobody was there, but hoping the opposite was true. “Anybody?”  
Crystal felt tears slide down her face. “I’m scared.” She spoke again, tears rolling freely down her cheeks. “I don’t like it here.”  
She noticed a light from above. “Wait, there’s a light!”  
She steadily got closer to the light after a while of floating upwards. She got out of the darkness, briefly having to shield her eyes from the drastic change of pitch-black darkness to bright, almost blinding light. “Finally out of there...”

  
Crystal wandered around for a while, eventually coming across the hot spring. She noticed her body lying in the hot spring, deathly still. “Finally, found my body!” She heard footsteps approaching her body, turning, she saw a familiar figure. Sheo, clutching shimmering white flowers to his chest. She watched as he laid the flowers next to the hot spring, a pile of identical flowers growing as he did so.  
Crystal spoke, excited to see a familiar face after waking up in the darkness. “Uncle Sheo?” She was startled when he turned to her, face lighting up, a spark of recognition flooding his eyes. She quickly grew concerned when tears started falling down his cheeks.

  
Crystal spoke, voice having a slight echo to it. “Uncle Sheo, why are you crying?”

  
Sheo spoke, voice wavering, tears glistening as the light of the hot spring’s water reflected perfectly in his tears. “Crystal, you’re okay?”

  
Crystal went over to her body, quickly going inside of her mask. She felt a feeling of connection as her shade fit snugly inside the vessel made for her. “Now I am!”

  
Sheo spoke, helping Crystal out of the water. “What happened to you?”

  
Crystal shrugged, bemusion evident on her face. “I’m not sure, but I’m okay.”

  
Sheo spoke, a smile forming on his face. “I think I should take you back to your dad.”

  
Mato heard a quiet knock at the door. He turned to Oro, and spoke as he wiped tears from his face. “Oro, can you please get the door?”

  
Oro nodded, knowing that Mato was hurting emotionally. “Sure, Mato.”

  
Oro opened the door, seeing a familiar face in Sheo’s arms. He felt tears fall from his face as he smiled. He yelled, joy overtaking him. “Mato, you need to come take a look at this!”

  
Mato got up, walking over to the door. He went to speak, but was cut short when he saw who was in Sheo’s arms. “What is-?”

  
Mato carefully took Crystal from Sheo, tears running down his face. “Crystal! I thought you were dead!”

  
Elisha ran over upon hearing his sister’s voice. He eagerly jumped up and down as he spoke. “Crystal!”

  
Crystal smiled as she saw her brother. She squirmed out of Mato’s grip, keeping herself from hitting the floor by hovering using her wings. She slowly lowered herself onto the ground. She spoke, giving Elisha a hug. “Elisha! I’m okay, I promise.”

  
Elisha hugged her back, speaking as tears threatened to flow from his eyes. “Promise you’ll never do that again?”

  
Crystal spoke, unknowing of whether she’d be able to keep it. “I promise.”


	27. White Lies, or Truths?

Mato turned to Sheo as he weighed the risks and benefits of his plan.

“Sheo, can you watch the kids for me?”

Sheo turned to him, slight concern in his voice.

“Where are you going?”

Mato spoke, unusually serious.

“I have some business to take care of.”

Sheo was immediately curious. “What kind of business?”

Mato spoke, voice terse.

“‘Go fight a lousy excuse for a parent’ kind of business.”

Sheo let out a sigh as he spoke.

“Mato, I’m not going to try to stop you. I know I can’t. You need to promise me one thing, however.”

Mato raised one eyebrow, wondering what his brother was about to ask of him

“What?”

Sheo spoke, not letting his worry and concern show on his face. 

“That you’ll try your best to come back, if not for me and Oro, then for the kids.”

Mato spoke, voice soft and unfaltering.

“I’ll try my best.”

Sheo placed a hand on Mato’s shoulder, trying to quell his worries, and his fears.

“Thanks.” 

A thought ran through his head as he watched Mato leave the house.  _ Please come back alive. _

Mato reached the Ancient Basin, quickly noticing a pale light coming from his right. He followed the light, quickly stumbling across the gates to the King’s castle. He noticed two guards standing in front of the gates. Mato hid, careful not to alert them to his presence.

Mato quietly spoke.

“Hmmm… Maybe I should attack them from behind?”

He carefully snuck up behind one of the guards. He carefully aimed his nail and thrust it forward. He heard the guard fall to the ground, most likely dead, or at the very least, unable to warn anyone. He did the same to the other guard.

Mato quietly spoke to himself, surveying the area for any more guards.

“That’s the guards down.”

Mato headed inside, quickly dispatching of anyone else he came across. “That’s everyone down, except  _ him. _ ” He came across the throne room. He quickly headed inside and saw the King’s back was turned. Mato snuck up on the King, stabbing him in the stomach. Mato quickly pulled his nail back, watching as the King held his stomach.

The Pale King screamed. He gritted his teeth afterward.

“Guards! Guards!”

The Pale King fell to the ground. He struggled, trying to get up.

Mato spoke, voice filled with disgust.

“All your guards are dead, lousy king. Lousy parent.”

The Pale King screamed, rage filling him.

“Lousy-?!”

Mato growled at the King.

“Stop talking. You never let  _ them _ talk. Now, you’ll share their pain.”

The Pale King smirked.

“You’ll be killed for this!”

Mato retorted.

“Not once everyone finds out what you did.”

The Pale King sneered.

“How will they know?”

Mato spoke, pulling a tape recorder out of his pocket.

“Simple.”

Mato spoke, anger in his voice.

“What did you do to the children?”

The Pale King smugly replied.

“The vessels, you mean?”

Mato screamed in the Pale King’s face.

“Children! They were children!”

The Pale King sneered.

“I won’t tell!”

Mato grabbed the Pale King’s arm and lightly twisted it.

“You sure?”

The Pale smirked at Mato.

”You won’t do it.”

Mato twisted the Pale King’s arm, hearing a loud  _ snap _ . The Pale King let out a blood-curdling scream.

Mato spoke again, holding onto the Pale King’s other arm.

“What did you do to the children?”

The Pale King sneered.

“I threw them away.”

Mato spoke. 

“Louder, so they all can hear!”

Mato heard the woosh of air from behind him. He turned around, deflecting a spear made out of soul. He turned to the Pale King.

“Don’t think you can try killing me!”

The Pale King sneered.

“Fine.”

Mato glared at the King, fury bubbling inside him.

“What did you do to the children? Loud enough so that they all can hear.”

The Pale King shouted at him. Mato was getting really sick of listening to the King, but knew that he had to get information.

“I threw them away! The imperfect ones!”

Mato shouted angrily. He remembered how Crystal and her siblings acted and thought about themselves, all because of a King who didn’t care about being a parent. 

“None of those children were imperfect! You were just too obsessed with your goal that you didn’t care!”

Mato knew the answer to the question he was about to ask, but everyone else needed to know too.

“Did you leave them knowing they would die there if they didn’t escape?”

The Pale King growled.

“Some of those worthless vessels escaped?”

Mato stabbed his nail into the ground near the Pale King. 

“Worthless?! If anyone is worthless, it’s you!”

The Pale King smiled as he glanced over Mato’s shoulder.

“Any last words?”

Mato spoke.

“Wha-!”

He felt a sharp pain in his chest.

Mato grimaced. He raised his nail, bringing it down upon the King.

”If I die, at least I’m not the only one going down.”

Mato looked at his chest. He quickly noticed blood pouring from an open wound. He hissed as pain flared in his chest as he touched it. He figured it was probably a soul spear from the Pale King. He looked around for something to bandage his wound.

He tore some of the Pale King’s robe, and carefully tied it around his chest. He tore a couple more layers, making sure it wouldn’t bleed through too bad. He hoped it would stop bleeding soon.

After a while, Mato got back to his house. He opened the door. He was immediately greeted by Sheo turning around and shouting.

“Mato, you’re back!”

Crystal ran over. She hugged Mato. He suppressed a scream as the pain in his chest flared to life.

“Dad, where’d you go?”

Mato smiled. The Pale King wouldn’t hurt anyone else.

“Let’s just say I was taking care of something.”

Crystal nodded.

“Okay!”

Sheo glanced at the tape recorder in Mato’s pocket.

“What’s that?”

Mato groaned.

“A tape recording of PK confessing to what he did.”

Sheo looked at him. He rested his hand on Mato’s shoulder.

“Mato, are you alright?”

Mato started to panic as he realized he didn’t know where he was.

He heard Sheo scream as everything went black.

“Mato!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't hurt the children or else Mato will break your arm.
> 
> *realizes I'm hurting the children* Oh no...


	28. Author's Note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a little author's note.

I'm going to be rewriting this, so I'll hopefully have at least chapter 1 of the rewrite up soon.


	29. Author's Note #2

The rewrite's up now. It's called: Nailmasters and Vessels [Improved].


End file.
